


One Life for the Two of Us

by iwriteshipsnotsailthem



Series: Dad Lance & Tattoo Artist Keith [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Grief/Mourning, M/M, Past Character Death, Shiro is Keith's foster brother, Single Parent Lance (Voltron), Tattoo Artist Keith (Voltron), Tooth-Rotting Fluff, the tags make it sound super sad but it's fluff i promise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-15
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-02-24 15:35:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 71,690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21800272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iwriteshipsnotsailthem/pseuds/iwriteshipsnotsailthem
Summary: Despite being a hopeless romantic, Lance has decided to put his look for love on hold when he suddenly becomes a father.That was until his plans get ruined when he meets Pidge's childhood friend, a hot tattoo artist named Keith.
Relationships: Adam/Shiro (Voltron), Allura/Romelle (Voltron), Hunk/Shay (Voltron), Keith/Lance (Voltron)
Series: Dad Lance & Tattoo Artist Keith [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1570900
Comments: 906
Kudos: 1496





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> so i hear it's been a year since the last season of Voltron came out so consider this fic as a 'fuck you' because canon can suck my metaphorical dick :)
> 
> PS he title is inspired by the song Two of Us by Louis Tomlinson

"Are you sure it's okay?" Lance asked again, eyes casting over to the 9-month-old that happily bounced on Shay's knee.

"Of course, Lance! Go! Have fun! Hunk, Vivian and I will be here having an _amazing_ time," she insisted with truthful eyes, then glanced down to the little girl on her lap. "Won't we Vivian?" Vivian smiled that perfect little angelic smile of hers, probably in reaction to the high pitch of Shay's bubbly tone.

"But what if-"

"Lance," Hunk cut him off, putting his warm, reassuring hands on Lance's tense shoulders. "It's going to only be a few hours while you go with Pidge to get her tattoo. We're going to be fine. She is going to just fine. Look at her-" Lance did just that, and a small smile spreads across his lips as he saw his daughter giggle as Shay tickled her tummy. "She's in great hands!"

"I know she is," Lance admitted. He sighed, feet shuffling. "I just don't like... you know? Leaving her for so long."

"It'll be a couple of hours."

"She won't know that! What if she gets confused? Like, wonders where I am and thinks I've left her?" Lance exasperated. He noticed Hunk's downtrodden expression and sighed. "I'm sorry, I'm acting crazy, you're right."

"Of course I am buddy." Hunk went back to grinning and gave Lance a comforting pat on the back. "Go on, have fun with Pidge. If you take any longer she's going to be late for her appointment."

Lance nodded, took a deep breath and walked over to Shay and Vivian. He leaned down and gave his daughter a quick kiss on her soft, chubby cheek.

"I'll be back soon Vivi. You have fun with Uncle Hunk and Aunty Shay." She made some baby blabbering noise, arms flailing. Lance smiled and ruffled her dark hair. "Good girl." He looked back up at Hunk. "I guess I'll be off then. Thanks for looking after her for me."

"Anytime Lance!" Shay insisted for her boyfriend.

After a few reluctant steps towards the door, Lance made his way outside of the apartment complex and towards his car. It was the first time he had been alone in months. It felt weird not to have those big blue eyes watching his every move with inquisitiveness and dependence.

Lance sighed and jumped into his car, hoping the guilt would dissolve away. 

* * *

"So, what are you thinking of getting?" Lance asked as he his parked the car on the side of the street.

"I'll show you, I've got a picture on my phone," Pidge murmured, now pulling her phone out of her pocket. As she did, Lance turned the car off, peering out the window at the Tattoo parlor as he waited. 

"Marmora Designs, huh?" It was a simple looking shop. Black signs and painted exterior - very edgy - but that's what they were probably going for. Along that was large glass windows, that was probably to allow bountiful natural light and to make it not look as intimidating for newcomers.

"Yup! One of my friend's works here. I've known him practically my whole life. He's the best of the best - here!" She said showed Lance an Instagram page that was obviously dedicated to tattoos. The designs were all intricate and a mixture of pretty flowers, skulls, animals, dragons and everything in between.

"What are you getting?" Lance asked as he scrolled down the page of endless photos.

"Remember the robot I made first year in college?"

"Rover? How could I forget! I'll never get the image of him catching on fire out of my head."

"Yeah, well I'm getting a tattoo of them."

Lance wiped an invisible tear from the corner of his eye. "What a lovely tribute."

"I agree," she grinned proudly at herself.

The front door dinged as they walked into the empty parlor. The only life present was the radio playing softly in background, humming something alternative and unfamiliar. Lance glanced to Pidge. He was beginning to wonder if she had made a mistake on the time due to the barrenness when a man walked into the room from the 'STAFF ONLY' door.

He looked like your stereotypical tattoo artist. Dressed in a loose tank top, which seemed to be a strategy to show off covered arms. From here, Lance could see a Lion. Some just looked to be patterns, or symbols. If the lack of sleeves was to not to show off his tattoos, it could also be to show off his muscles, Lance wasn't sure. Even when Lance had time to workout, he could never build himself like that, and they looked a similar height too. How unfair.

From what he could see, the tattoo artist didn't have any other visible tattoos. None on his face or weird shit. Which was probably a good thing. The guy was actually rather handsome.

His appearance probably deserved more than a 'rather handsome' but the one thing that took him down a notch was his hair.

"A mullet? What year is this?" Lance murmured under his breath as he approached.

"That's the first thing you comment on?" Pidge murmured back.

"Haven't chickened out yet?" Mullet Man asked, picking up a sketch book and put it on the counter. Lance took a quick glance at it.

"No, and if you insist I am again I'll gut you Keith." So, Mullet Man's name was Keith.

"Duly noted. Is this your moral support?" Keith said, and it took a moment for Lance to realise he was actually talking to him, grey eyes overlooking him intensely. 

"Yup." Lance said popping the p. Nine months ago, Lance would've nailed this guy with some smooth ass pick up line. But shit changes and it's been too long since he's actually spoken to an attractive stranger.

"Lance," Pidge supplied when he didn't. Keith nodded.

"Cool, nice to meet you. Let's go get organised. Follow me." Keith turned around, leading them up a few steps and into a separate area of the shop where there was a large seat, a bench full of appliances, rubber gloves and a few other bits and bobs Lance wouldn't know what were. The walls were also covered in designs, and there was an open display folder with pictures of tattoos he had obviously done in the past. They looked good. Lance was confident this guy wasn't a dud and wasn't going to ruin his friend's skin.

"Pidge, this your first tattoo, right?" Keith asked. "I feel honoured."

"You'd kill me if I got one that wasn't done by you," she said with a grin. Lance hadn't realised how chummy these guys were. He wondered why they'd never crossed paths before. 

"Good. Glad you're aware. We should go through some safety shit to start with. But first, I need you to sign this consent form-"

By this stage Lance had successfully zoned out and was flipping through the folder with photos of Keith's work just for something to do. He was really good, just like his Instagram page implied. He'd done a _lot_ of tattoos on both males and females and on every body part imaginable; ankles, wrists, necks, fingers, ribs, arms, legs and even few butts and breasts.

"You looking for something yourself?" Keith's voice brought Lance out of his own mind. When Lance looked up, he noticed that Pidge had the sleeve of her shirt rolled up, and Keith was wiping the area with what smelt like disinfectant.

"Me? Oh, no. Just looking. They're cool. You're talented. I can't even draw stick figures," Lance blabbered out awkwardly. Keith smiled nonetheless.

"Thanks. Tats aren't for everyone. I get it."

"More like Lance here is afraid of needles," Pidge supplied smugly.

"I am not!" Lance lied with a huff. He didn't want to look like a loser in front of the handsome man who worked with needles for a living. Fucking Pidge, throwing him under the bus like that.

Said handsome man just chuckled, throwing the disinfectant wipe in the bin. He then pulled out a stencil of the design Pidge had picked out and ink (not of the permanent kind).

"You wouldn't be the first person who has walked in here who didn't like needles. They're not the nicest things," he said, brows bunching up concentration as he pressed the stencil to her arm and began to fill it in. When he was finished, he pulled out a mirror and showed her the design that was on the top of her art where her shoulder was. "How's this? Remember, it's going to be on there forever, so make sure you're happy with it."

"I love it," she smiled excitedly, looking like an eager child in front of an ice cream store.

Thinking of children made Lance feel nauseous with guilt for leaving Vivian. He checked to make sure there weren't any messages from Hunk or Shay. There weren't. That was a good sign... right?

"Cool, let's start this then." Lance watched in horror as Keith pulled out a massive _killing machine_. It looked like some sort of torture device. In a way it kind of was.

Lance felt his stomach go queasy.

"You ready?" Keith said and Lance knew this wasn't directed at him, but he was in no way ready for that to jab the fuck out of Pidge's arm.

Lance must of missed the part where Pidge said yes or nodded her consent because then Keith turned on the unholy device.

Lance suddenly felt light headed.

" _Dios mío,"_ Lance mumbled under his breath before he passed out.

* * *

"Welcome to the land of the living," a voice pulled Lance out of unconsciousness. He looked up to see a blurry figure. At first, he thought it was Pidge, but the voice was all too familiar and distinctively male.

"Matt?" Lance murmured, feeling like he just came out of a deep sleep. He blinked a few times to clear his vision.

"Hi. How's it hanging?" Matt grinned. Lance groaned in response.

"What happened?" he grumbled, sitting upright on a red sofa.

"You saw the big needle and went night night," Matt's mockery made Lance scowl. "Seriously though, you good?" he asked, now sounding like a good friend; genuinely concerned.

"I'm fine." Lance looked around the unfamiliar room and frowned. "Here's another question; where the fuck am I?"

"The staff room of Marmora Designs Tattoo Parlour. Katie is still getting her tattoo done."

"I am the worst moral support," Lance whined in despair. He had gone out today to join Pidge and be there for when she got her first tattoo and had let her down by passing out at the sight of the needle.

"She's fine. Her and Keith have been friends for years."

That's right, Keith.

Not only was Lance crappy moral support, but he had embarrassed himself in front of the hot tattoo artist.

 _Awesome_.

"Oh, he's awake!" A girl burst into the room with long blonde hair pulled back into two long French braids. She raced over to the couch and put the back of her hand on Lance's forehead. With her so close, Lance can see she has a few petite, minimalist tattoos up her arms and a nose stud.

"Umm..." Lance murmured, glancing to Matt, hoping he knew who this random pretty girl was and why she was touching his face.

"Oh!" She squeaked, retreating her hand. "I'm sorry! My name is Romelle! I'm a nurse - well training to be one anyway - and I checked up on you to make sure you weren't hurt while you were unconscious!" she rambled out quickly like a whirlwind of words. "Are you in any pain?"

"I think I'm fine thank you." Lance murmured out, beyond embarrassed. Suddenly the freight train of realisation hit Lance. "Vivian!" He shouted out and Matt smiled.

"Don't worry, I called Hunk and Shay. She's fine." Lance let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank god." Lance relaxed. He was going to need to do something nice for those two for all this trouble. Like one of those giant teddy bears or something with a card saying _'sorry I passed out and was unable to get in contact with you while left you alone with my infant'_.

The girl - Romelle - fidgeted.

"So, are you sure you're alright? You're rather pale," the concern in her voice was genuine. A perfect stranger worrying about his health, she'd be a good nurse.

"I'm okay," he insisted as he sat up. "Pidge is never going to let me down for this one," he grumbled, a hand going to his fuzzy head. Just like the universe had heard him, the door opened and Pidge paraded into the room, cling wrap over her arm.

"Nice to know you aren't dead Lance."

_And so it begins._

"I should have just brought Shay. You and Hunk are weak."

"Well I'm _sorry_ I was afraid for your welfare! That thing was going to be stabbing you _multiple_ times!" There was a low chuckle as Keith walked into the room after Pidge.

"You make it sound like it's some sort of murder weapon," he said, a teasing glint in his eyes that had Lance going red cheeked. Humiliated. He wanted to bury his head in the sand. "You okay though? You were out to it when I carried you here."

_... huh?_

"Carried?" Lance asked and Matt laughed.

"You were super zonked out. Keith bridal style carried you to the staff room couch."

Lance looked down at the couch he was currently sitting on. He hadn't even thought of _how_ he got here. Apparently he had Keith to thank for.

"O-oh." He stammered, face heating up. He's so embarrassed. He goes out for a day without Vivian for the first time in _months,_ passes out and gets carried by an attractive stranger who was also Pidge's tattoo artist and childhood friend.

Lance was never leaving his house again. He and Vivian were officially becoming hermits.

He looked to Keith, who had pink cheeks himself.

"Thank you. I'm sorry about that," Lance apologised, face red as he wringed his hands.

"It's fine," Keith insisted evenly, not quite looking Lance in the eyes. He held a jar filled with red jelly beans out to him. "Sugar?" he asked, cheeks pink. Both Matt and Pidge snickered behind their hands while Lance smiled sheepishly, taking one.

"Thanks."

"Oh Keith, forever the smooth talker. How do you not have a boyfriend I wonder?" Matt pondered out loud, humming over dramatically. Lance piqued at the new information of Keith being into guys as he chewed. Interesting.

Keith flushed red. "Shut up!" he snapped like a bristling cat. It was quite the contrast from his cool calm and collective guy he first met, it was almost humourous to watch.

"Oh no need to be shy Keith!" Matt insisted. "Now that I think about it, _how_ long has it been since you've been on a date?"

There was a ding outside the staff room door.

"I have to get back to work," Keith muttered before dashing for the door, leaving the four of them back alone.

"Does he know we're technically not allowed back here?" Romelle asked. "Nobody here is an actual staff member." They all exchanged a short look. Matt pointed to the jar Keith left behind in his flurry.

"Yo, we should eat the rest of those jellybeans."

* * *

"Heard you carried a pretty damsel in distress today," Shiro snickered, using the cocktail shaker to mix up his latest creation. Keith glared at his brother from under his lashes. "Thought you'd be a little merrier about that. No need to shoot daggers at me."

"Who even told... Matt." Keith said, answering his own question.

"Matt," Shiro confirmed, pouring the liquid he was shaking into a tall glass. "Here, taste this for me. What do you think?" He asked as Keith took a swig. He put the glass down.

"Tastes like ass."

"So you liked it?"

"Loved it. How the hell do you do that? What's even in this?" he asked. It was a peculiar, very strong alcoholic taste.

"A mixologist must never give away his secrets." Shiro had been working in a bar since he was 18 to help pay his college bills. He majored in business and ended up owning his own bar. He became a mixologist and was one of the best in the area. People came to his bar just to try his drinks. Also, to ogle, but he was famous for his drinks, not his looks. "So, this guy..." he trailed off.

"Lance," Keith supplied reluctantly.

"Lance. Is he cute? Matt said you looked rather smitten. That you were _actually_ nice to him. Gave him a jellybean and all, how sweet."

Keith scoffed. "I'm nice to plenty of people."

"Not when you first meet them. Was he really that cute?"

He _really_ was that cute. Brown skin hidden under jeans and oversized hoodie. His hair was messy and a little under done, like it was supposed to have a certain style that he just didn't have time to attend to or was getting too long for his liking. Eyes blue, very blue. The kind of blue where you assumed it was fake. But Keith wouldn't understand that if he had time to put coloured contacts in when he couldn't put a brush through his hair. But he kinda also looked like he hadn't slept in about thirty years, with dark shadows under his eyes and a nervous stammer.

Despite it, Keith thought he was incredibly endearing.

"And you've been silent for the past thirty seconds thinking about how cute he is... Huh, you really _are_ smitten." Shiro chuckled, elbows leaning against the counter. "You know what you should do?"

"Don't say it."

"Get his number."

"I told you not to say it," Keith rolled his eyes, spinning on the bar stool with a frown.

"I see nothing wrong with you just asking for his number for the next time you see him. You _will_ see him again. He's good friends with Pidge, right?"

"... Yeah."

"So next time you see him just talk to him! Get to know him a little better. Or maybe ask Pidge for it."

Keith's mouth twitched, a nervous habit of his.

"I dunno," he murmured, twirling his straw in his cup.

"There's no shame in trying. Now..." Shiro trailed off, holding out a new drink for Keith to taste test. "Try this one for me?"

* * *

"Ahhh," Lance said, mimicking the movement of opening his mouth. Vivian giggled at his antics, but still didn't open her mouth for her sweet potato. "Ahhh!" Lance repeated with a little more passion. Her smiled brightened enough for her mouth to open, giving him room to slip one last mouthful of goop into her mouth.

It was lunchtime, and Lance's mama and sister Veronica would be coming over to visit soon. The weekly visits were always the best. It was nice to have his family around. Having someone to help look after Vivian gave Lance a couple of hours to get shit done. Like grocery shopping. He needed food in the house that _wasn't_ baby food or baby formula.

Lance used Vivian's bib to wipe off the orange goop on her face with a fond smile. She was in an especially good mood today; all smiles and giggles. These days were the best, the easiest in reminding Lance why he was doing this. That he hadn't made the wrong decision. All those smiles made the sleepless nights all worth it.

Lance lifted the baby out of the high-chair and placed her on his hip as he went to the couch to play some quality peek-a-boo. They did this until the doorbell rang, signaling his mother and sister's arrival.

"It's open!" he called out, lifting Vivian so that her feet were on Lance's thighs. Her toes curled as she squirmed excitedly as he held her in the standing position. 

Lance's mama and Veronica walked into the room all smiles and grins. His mama didn't waste a second before she scooped Vivian in her arms and coddled her with kisses and smiles. And to think Lance used to be the favourite...

Veronica smiled. "You look like you've been sleeping better," she noted as she sat down beside him on the couch.

"I have been getting a solid 5 hours."

"Impressive," she snickered. "She's grown. Her hair is longer."

It had only been month since Veronica had last visited due to a long business trip out of town. A month was a long time when it came to babies. Vivian had grown so much in that short amount of time.

"Lance, sweetheart," his mama gained his attention. "I was thinking of cooking you some meals, you're not eating enough. Do you have any ingredients?" she asked and Lance flinched. She tutted, shaking her head. "Go down to the shops _mijo_ , I'll make you a list. Veronica and I can look after Vivian while you're gone." She looked to her granddaughter and booped her noise. "We can have some quality, girl time."

Lance remembered the last time he had left Vivian and hesitated. It had been two weeks ago, but the embarrassment of passing out was still burning hot in his stomach.

"Do I have to?" he asked antsy. She gave him a frown that was as enough answer as any. " _Fine."_ Lance grumbled, stalking over to Vivian who babbled as he placed a quick kiss to her head. "I'll be back soon Vivi. Be good. Okay?" He grinned down at his little girl as she made a noise and extended her arms out to Lance, obviously wanting to be held. "Sorry sweetpea, I gotta go to the shops so I don't have to eat your baby food."

"Pa," she managed out.

"Uh-huh, Papa will be back later," he told her although she didn't really understand. He looked down to his mama and pouted. "Hope you have fun. She's going to cry the second I walk out that door." 

She huffed, holding Vivian closer to her chest. "I can handle a screaming child. I raised you, didn't I?" Lance chuckled and gave Vivian a final kiss to the cheek before he turned and grabbed his keys.

The rattle of them was enough for Vivian to begin to whimper. Keys meant leaving. He forced himself to not look back over his shoulder as he left the apartment. By the time he had closed the door he could hear the onset of tears.

"Told you so," Lance muttered softly as he reluctantly walked away.

* * *

Lance was reaching for the mixed spices when he heard his name.

"Lance?" The voice made his head turn. It didn't sound completely unfamiliar, but not instantly recognisable.

When he did look, he saw the same man he completely humiliated himself in front of two weeks prior. Keith was wearing dark joggers, a sleeveless hoodie and had his dark hair was swept back into a pony tail.

_Holy mother of god how dare he look that good._

"Oh- uh, _hi!_ " Lance stumbled on his words, face already pink as he forced his eyes to stay on Keith's face.

"I thought that was you," the man smiled, it wobbled shyly as he seemed stuck on what to say. "How are you after the other week?" he asked, taking a step closer to get out of the way of an elderly lady walking down the aisle who gave him (and his tattoos) a dirty look.

"Oh yeah! Totally fine! Super! _Superb_ even," Lance blurted, ending with a cringe worthy laugh. Oh, how he wish he wasn't so awkward. He really needed to get out more.

"That's good to hear," he smiled softly. "I was wondering if you were free next weekend? Pidge and I were talking about having a group gathering since we have so many mutual friends. She said she wanted to invite you, but apparently you're busy a lot, so she wasn't sure if you'd be able to come."

Pidge _had_ mentioned it to Lance offhandedly a couple of days ago. But it had gotten lost in the tangle of everything else on Lance's mind. She'd told him a few friends were going and that sounded instantly tiring for Lance, meeting a new bunch of people.

_God, Lance had changed so much in such a short amount of time._

But knowing Keith was going to be there - handsome, sweet, hot as hell tattoo artist Keith - made the idea seem much more appealing.

"Umm..." He'd need to get a baby sister. Maybe Veronica or his mama could pull through for him? There was a certain amount of guilt that came with that though. He didn't like to rely on his family too often since he was the one who was adamant that he could raise Vivian on his own. 

"I will try my best," Lance said and _why the hell would he say that?_ "I should be able to," he added on to sound a little more confident. _Idiot!_

Keith smiled. _Worth it._

"Sounds good," he said and gestured to Lance's shopping cart. "I should let you get back to your shopping."

"Yeah," Lance chuckled, ready to push his shopping cart away, but Keith spoke before he could. 

"Oh, Lance before you go," Keith murmured as he dug his hand into his back pocket and pulled out his phone. "Can I get your number? That way you can let me know if you're coming." Lance's eyes widened a little, glancing from the phone back to Keith's eyes.

"Sure," he decided. Because why the fuck not? Yes Lance, you give your number to a hot dude. Fatherhood hadn't changed shit, he's still got it.

He took the phone from Keith's hand with shaky fingers, put his number in, then rang his own phone. He always used to call himself after giving his number away, a kind of 'now we've both got each other's' . When was the last time he had pulled that trick? Old habits die hard apparently. 

"There we go," Lance smiled as felt himself blush brighter when Keith grinned.

"Cool, let me know if you can come. Pidge would be happy if you did. You guys seem close."

"Yeah we are, I met her through my best friend Hunk," he explained to him, not sure why he felt the need to. Keith nodded like he gave a damn.

"Her brother Matt is my brother's best friend. We've always gotten along," Keith elaborated his own side. "I was surprised when she asked me to do a tattoo for her. She always called me a thug for mine." A laugh escaped Lance's lips which seemed to catch Keith off guard.

"That _does_ sound like a Pidge thing to say. I think you're too sweet to be a thug though." Lance felt proud of himself when he saw Keith's face go red. _Oh yeah, he's still got game._

"Thanks," he chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'll let you go now."

"I'll see you later Keith," he said politely before pushing the cart away, nearly slamming into the spices shelf since he wasn't looking where the hell he was going, a silly little smile on his face.

* * *

When Keith knew that Lance had fully turned away and pushed his cart around and down the aisle, he pumped his fists in the air in a silent victory.

* * *

Lance could hear giggling before he even opened the door. He had four large bags filled with ingredients, two in each hand. It was a bit of an effort to open the door and grab his keys from his back pocket, but he eventually got it.

From inside the front door, he could see Vivian crawling from in between Veronica and his mama. A squeal of delight left her mouth as she spotted him. He gave her a quick wave of hello and it was an immediate success because her course changed from crawling to Veronica to him.

Vivian McClain at nine months old was an expert at crawling. Lance fancied himself to say that she'd be an Olympian one day, but for now, crawling was plenty enough. She chased after him as he walked to the kitchen. The baby babble was loud and expressive at his feet while he put the groceries away.

It went a little something like this.

"How was your time with your _A_ _buela_ and _T_ _ía_ Veronica?" Lance asked.

She went on in her babble, none of it making not even a wink of sense.

"Wow really? _Tía_ Veronica did what last weekend?" Lance looked over his shoulder at his older sister. "How scandalous." Veronica rolled her eyes. "What else did you do?

She went onto another little ramble for about thirty seconds.

"No way!"

She giggled at his tone.

"What else?"

Vivian went onto babble a little more, sitting her butt down on the ground, sick of crawling.

"Now tell me, were you a good girl?" he asked, leaning down to pick her up. She giggled, light and high. "I'm happy to hear that. You're a little angel, huh?" he asked, pressing a few loud kisses to her cheeks.

"You're in a good mood," Veronica noted as Lance carried Vivian back to the couch. He sat her on his knee, grabbing her rabbit blanket - affectionately named B.B (for Bunny Blanket) - to keep her entertained while his mama got up to go make him enough food to last him a month. God bless her soul. "Did something good happen while shopping?"

Lance instantly thought about handsome tattoo artist Keith and flushed red. He cleared his throat and noticed the way Veronica's brow raised, intrigued.

"I bumped into a friend. Not really a friend actually... Probably an acquaintance, but yeah, I was talking to him for a little bit. He's friends with Pidge and they organised a get together and was wondering if I was going and asked for my number and stuff," Lance rambled. Veronica's eyebrows rose higher.

"And does this kinda friend, kinda acquaintance have a name?"

"Keith, I passed out and he carried me bridal style," Lance blurted out with no reason at all. She looked very concerned.

" _Passed out?_ When did this happen?"

"I went with Pidge when she got a tattoo."

"You passed out when you saw the needle, didn't you?"

"I passed out when I saw the needle," he confirmed, making her laugh. "It's not funny! I could've passed out and landed on a needle and _died!"_

"Okay so why was Keith there?"

"Keith was the tattoo artist."

"Lance no," she blanched.

"What?"

"You're crushing on the tattoo artist? I thought you were done with bad boys?"

"I don't have a crush on him-" _lie,_ "I've only had two conversations with him. I don't even know his last name. And he's definitely not a bad boy." Lance reflected on the way Keith blushed as he asked for his number. "He's... sweet."

"Yeah, and remember what you said about Liam?"

"But-"

"And Georgina?"

"Technically not a _bad boy_ -"

"Don't even get me started on Sam."

"Okay, okay! I get it!" Lance huffed and wrapped his arms around Vivian a little tighter. "It doesn't even matter. I can't date anyone at the moment. He wouldn't want to date me when he realised I was a two package deal," he said, resting his chin on Vivian's head, soft, dark hair soft against his chin.

Veronica sighed in slight resignation.

"You know you could've let mama raise her. Or Luis. They both offered."

"Like hell, she asked _me_ to do it. I'm not going to let her down." Lance said indefinitely, brows scrunched up in irritation. The air turned thick and awkward for a moment. That was the end of that conversation.

"So, are you going to go?" she asked after a few long minutes of silence. Lance frowned.

"I dunno..."

"You should go. You need to get out more. I can look after her for you if you want." Veronica wasn't the first person who insisted he needed to get out more. Lance nibbled on his bottom lip in thought. "And hey, it's not like you have to marry the guy, you could just like... hook up with this Keith guy." Lance blushed, covering Vivian's ears, making Veronica laugh. "Seriously?"

"I feel dirty!"

"Never stopped you before Vivian."

"Now I'm supposed to be a good role model!"

"Lance, you're 22, you're allowed to have sex with some random guy if you want to," Veronica told him with a fond roll of her eyes. "I'll take her. I'll get a shift off at the restaurant. You can have fun for a night."

Lance felt the guilt roll off him in waves.

"You're allowed to have fun Lance. Just because you're a dad now doesn't mean you can't be _you._ I haven't seen you dress the same since you brought Vivian home."

"I dressed like a hoe."

"That's because you kind of are a hoe."

" _Were_." Lance corrected. He couldn't remember the last the he masturbated, let alone had _sex._ He definitely had lost his 'lover-boy' trademark. "You should of see me Veronica, I can barely flirt anymore!"

"You're rusty, that's all. Flirt with Keith. Get back in the groove. You'll be fine Lance."

Lance sighed and thought about the man with the inked up arms and sweet smile.

Something didn't settle right in his stomach at the thought of Lance using Keith as a one night stand, which before Vivian wouldn't of worried him too much. He had one night stands all the time. Flirted to anyone he deemed worth it.

Lance looked to the bundle of perfect in his lap and smiled.

This little girl was making Lance a better person already, and she had only been on this earth for such a short time.

Lance was never going to regret her.

* * *

Keith walked into the bar with a massive grin and shoved his phone in Shiro's face. The screen was showcasing his latest achievement; getting Lance's phone number.

"And you said I wouldn't do it." Shiro grabbed at the phone, pulling it back so he could look at the screen. The corner of his lips curved upwards.

"I'm impressed."

" _And_ I might have convinced him to come to the group gathering and your apartment next weekend."

Shiro laughed as he polished a glass.

"Well I can't wait to meet him and see what has you all worked up," he mused. "Want a free drink to help celebrate?"

Keith slid onto a bar stool and smirked. "I think I deserve two."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay soooooooooooooooooooo  
> i have a plan on updating this fic every two weeks. It's fully written, so don't worry about it being incomplete, but i wanted to space out the updates so I have time to work on others works (for example, my spider-man au). I'd love to update every week but ya girl has carpal tunnel syndrome so i gotta take it easy (don't worry, i'm getting help and it's getting better)  
> I'm only updating this week because i thought there was no point in updating next week because of christmas and stuff
> 
> I just wanted to let y'all know
> 
> also i'm happy to see you're liking this so far! I hope you continue to

"How the hell did you convince Lance to come out?" Pidge asked from the front seat as Hunk drove towards the host's house.

"That's the weird thing, I _didn't_."

"Then who the hell did?"

"I don't know. I'm just impressed he actually washed his hair for once."

"And put on something other than mom jeans and an oversized sweater."

"I am literally right here," Lance muttered as he scrolled through his phone. More specifically, his messages with Keith. There was a total of ten, but they were making him excited to see him tonight. "You could just ask me yourself."

Pidge looked over her shoulder to Lance in the back seat, sitting with Shay who giggled at their banter.

"Okay then, who the hell convinced you to come out and wear your old clothes?"

"Keith and Veronica, respectively." 

"You've been speaking to Keith?" she asked, brows shooting up.

"Yup," he said, popping the p as he looked at his phone in attempt hide his embarrassment.

Pidge looked hesitant. "You... and Keith..."

"Yeah, I guess we're friends. I bumped into him buying groceries, we chatted for a bit," Lance said with a nonchalant shrug. Pidge and Hunk exchanged a short glance. "What?"

"Nothing, it's just... Keith doesn't like people... ever."

"He's friends with you, isn't he?"

"Only because I'm Matt's sister and Matt is friends with his big brother! We were forced to be friends as children. We're just lucky we both grew up sarcastic shits."

"At least we now know why Lance washed his hair," Hunk snickered.

"You make me sound like a grub! I'm just a busy father who sometimes doesn't get the luxury, okay?" Lance huffed, looking back down to his phone.

"Hey, I'm just playing with you man. With both things." Lance knew that. Still, he hasn't been out drinking with friends in months, he was feeling a little skittish. Going out drinking, partying, it had been a part of his weekly routine all up until a few months ago. Now it felt so foreign.

"I need to get drunk tonight. Like _really_ drunk." Lance decided.

"Are you sure about that? A hangover and a crying baby wouldn't be the best combination., Shay said and Lance was already cringing at the sound. Crying and squealing babies were enough to deal with normally, let alone with a splitting headache.

"Okay yeah, maybe not a great idea."

"Let's just see how you go, Shiro - Keith's big brother - makes the best cocktails!"

"Oof, that's some temptation right there," Lance sighed.

He could use a cocktail. Or shot. Make that shots (plural). He could put up with the headache tomorrow. Tonight he just wanted to have a night for himself.

Dear god he sounded like a middle-aged wine drunk mother who posted about her woes on Facebook. 

He uncapped the bottle of vodka he had just brought and took a swig. 

* * *

"You're more shifty than usual," Allura noted, swinging her tattooed legs over Romelle's lap.

"He's excited to see his new boyfriend," Shiro explained, earning a sharp look from Keith. Matt 'oohed' in interest.

"The one who passed out at the sight of a needle?" Allura was also a tattoo artist, so when she heard about the boy who fainted, she thought it was quite humorous.

"Wait, _wait!_ " Matt said, cutting them all off. "Are you talking about _Lance?"_ he asked, eyes wide.

"He's not my boyfriend, we just talked a few times," Keith said rolling his eyes. He wasn't going to deny he had been on edge all day though, excited to just talk to the cute boy. "But yeah, they're talking about Lance."

Matt's panic seemed to intensify. "You do know that he's got a-"

"Sup bitches!" Pidge's voice cut Matt off as the group entered the room. First in was Pidge, followed by a tall, dark man who held hands with a girl with short, curly hair and brown skin. Following behind them all was Lance, who held a bottle of vodka which had definitely been opened.

And _wow._

Keith lifted his beer to his lips, but the only thing he was drinking in was Lance. His hair wasn't the scruff and boyish mess he'd seen from him the previous two times, but nicely styled and neat yet still charmingly tousled. His hair was the least of Keith's worries though. The last two times Keith had seen Lance he had been dressed in basic jeans and a hoodie thirty sizes too big. Now he's dressed in stark white jeans that extenuated his skin tone, and a black, slim fitted black t shirt showing off broad shoulders and a slim waist.

Keith took a long sip of his drink.

"A pretty boy," Allura whispered next to Keith's ear. Keith frowned at her deviant smirk.

They all went around the room, introducing the new people to the group. Keith learned that the tall guy and the girl he was holding hands with was Hunk and Shay. Hunk and Romelle both somehow knew each other and appeared to be pretty good friends.

"Lance!" Allura said, adjusting herself so she was taking up less room, leaving a space in between herself and Keith. "Come sit here! I want to meet the boy who my girlfriend nurtured back to health!" Lance smiled and practically flung himself onto the couch at the chance. He put the bottle of vodka on the coffee table and pushed it away from his reach.

Once finishing the story of him passing out at the sight of the needle, he glanced towards Keith and smiled, sending a whole wave of heat in Keith's chest, heart thumping.

"Hi Keith," he smiled sweetly.

"Hey." Keith caught sight of Allura over Lance's shoulder giving him an encouraging look. "You look nice tonight," he decided on, which was apparently the right thing to say because Allura gave him a thumbs up.

Lance's face flushed, a little laugh escaping his lips.

"Thanks. You've probably only seen me when I'm dressed like a slob. I don't get a lot of time to make myself presentable too often. Too busy and stuff," he spoke quickly. The quiver in his voice indicated nerves. Was Keith making him nervous? The thought was starting to make Keith himself nervous. "I actually got time tonight to pick out an outfit instead of grabbing the first thing I saw and to do my hair and shit."

"What kind of job do you have?" Keith asked. Because whatever it was, it seemed to take up a whole lot of his time.

"I work at an Aquarium! I've been working there since I was 17. I started in the gift shop which was cool as a teenager, but now I'm a tour guide and I have a whole lot of fish facts burned into my brain - fun fact, did you know herrings communicate through farts? True shit that is. But I'm applying for a job... you know, actually working with the marine life. I graduated from college a few months ago so I'll be hopefully actually working with the animals soon," he grinned, closing his mouth to stop himself from laughing. It was slightly out of place.

"Lance... are you tipsy?" Keith asked, smile creeping on his face.

"Umm..." Lance trailed off, wincing at himself a little. "Maybe? Pidge and I went to the bottle shop before we came here and I got that-" he pointed to the bottle of vodka on the table. "I haven't been out in a while. You know? Like drinking and shit. And I kinda don't know many people so I cracked it open and had a few swigs to make me less awkward and nervous and stuff. I haven't touched a drop of alcohol in like... eight months? It's hit me hard dude." He ended his ramble with a giggle that was undeniably adorable.

"You're nervous?" Keith asked. "Why?"

"New people, drinking.... other stuff." There was a pause. "You."

"Me?" Keith asked, grin growing.

"You're very handsome," Lance said it like it explained everything. "And you always have your big muscly arms out to show off your ink which is _super_ hot by the way. Oh god, I should just shut up. Yep. Time to stop talking, Lance." 

Yep, Lance was definitely tipsy and his confessions made Keith laugh. Allura and Romelle were watching the whole exchange eagerly, like they were retired women waiting for their favourite soap opera to start.

"Thank you, Lance. You're cute," Keith said and chuckled as Lance laughed nervously, bright blue eyes averting from his shyly. Something bloomed a little in Keith's chest. 

"I think I'm going to need another drink," Lance smiled shakily making Keith laugh a little more. Pidge and Matt looked over at him at the same time.

"Do you want Shiro to make you something?" Keith offered, watching the boy's eyes widen.

"Your brother? The drink making guy?" Lance asked, blinking a few times with shining innocence like he'd just asked if he wanted candy.

"Yeah, he's really good. What kind of stuff do you like?" Keith asked and Lance looked stumped by the question. "Do you like sweet drinks?" Keith asked, taking an estimated guess, it was a pretty good one it seemed because Lance nodded profusely. Keith heaved himself off the couch and made his way across the room to Shiro who was standing with Adam. "Okay, you're going to do me a solid and make Lance a drink."

"You seem to be getting along rather well," Shiro smirked. "You're right, he is cute." Keith snickered as Adam beside him gave Shiro a sour frown. "Calm down, I'm marrying _you,_ not to mention Keith would fight me for him."

"I would, and I would win. He's freaking adorable," Keith said, glancing over his shoulder to Lance who was chatting animatedly away to Romelle and Allura. "I'm going to date that man, mark my words."

"Well I better help you get in his good books. What does he want?"

"Something sweet. Also, make it weak, he's already a little drunk."

"This is so weird seeing Keith fawn over someone like this," Adam mused, sipping his piña colada with a smug expression. "You must like him enough to want to keep him sober."

Keith shifted a little on his feet. "I dunno, I really want to get to know him." Keith had a good feeling about Lance, and that was almost unheard of when it came to Keith. Keith, who always kept people at arms length, always had a bad feeling about _everyone_ he met and for some reason this random guy he barely even knows is sparking his interest.

"Oh my god Takashi, make the poor boy a drink so he can win over his soulmate," Adam teased, shoving his fiancé in the direction of the kitchen where all his shakers and syrups were.

He watched Shiro make it. Had seen him make countless types of drinks. Keith had no idea what contraption his brother was making, but he knew it would be good either way. When completed, Keith took the odd purple coloured with the scent of blackberries drink to Lance. He took a sip and his eyes widened in delight and smiled toothily.

God bless Shiro and his drink making abilities.

The next two hours went by in a blur. Keith learned that Lance was an avid believer of cleaning the oceanand not culling sharks because they were an important part of the ecosystem. Even though he was tipsy, borderline drunk, he could quite easily babble on about the ocean. His passion for it all was impressive (and Keith wasn't going to lie, really attractive). Along the line he had also learnt that Lance had recently completed his Marine Biology degree, was a fan of the beach, was raised in Cuba until he was eight and then moved to America and had been here ever since.

Keith told him he did Fine arts at college, which prompted him to go into tattooing. Lance would nod along as he spoke, seemingly getting closer and closer throughout each story.

Neither of them brought up the subject of family, which Keith was glad for. He'd rather not bore Lance with his tragic upbringing.

Maybe Keith's favourite part was that Lance was the chatty when nervous type. Since Keith made him a little nervous he saw a lot of that, even mentioned it a few times in his tipsy state. 

Keith would flirt a little which really was a first, ending in Lance going in on a tangent of laughter or talking about the first thing he could think of. It was like he hadn't ever been flirted with, or hadn't in a while or something. Keith found that very, very hard to believe.

The more Keith spoke to Lance, the more he found himself liking him. He liked his nervous chuckle and how he used his hands as he spoke to emphasise what he was conveying. He thought it was admirable that he wanted to save all the creatures in the ocean from litter and he really, _really_ liked the fact their shoulders were pressed up against each other.

It was too bad it all had to come crashing down on Keith.

Lance's phone rang and he smiled as he looked at the caller ID.

"Who is that?" Allura asked for Keith so he didn't have to because _oh god_ who was making him smile like that? Lance grinned, already standing up from his position next to Keith, leaving him a little cold.

"Just the special little lady in my life. Shiro do you mind if I go out on the balcony?" he asked, pointing to the door.

Shiro faltered for a moment before he answered. "O-oh yeah of course. Go ahead." Lance smiled with a nod before scattering outside to take the call.

"What in the fuck?" Allura beside him whispered in disbelief. He was thinking the exact same thing. Special lady? Lance had a girlfriend? Had been flirting with Keith _all_ night and he had a girlfriend?

Keith took a long chug of his beer.

It was dumb how much that one actually hurt.

"He has a girlfriend?" Romelle asked Allura quietly.

"I am _so_ sorry Keith," Allura whispered, rubbing his shoulder.

He was being over dramatic. He shouldn't have gotten so excited. He didn't know Lance, of course he was an asshole with a girlfriend at home, probably not even aware her boyfriend was cozying up with someone else.

Keith felt so dumb.

Lance swept back into the room, eyes narrowed in determination as he walked across the apartment.

"Hunk, we have to go," he said steely. The sight of the blushing and smiling boy gone, taken over by someone looking stone cold sober as he left the apartment without another word. Hunk jumped to his feet without a second of hesitation and followed Lance out the door.

Shay and Pidge took a second longer to register.

"Oh fuck," Pidge said, chasing after them.

"I better go, as well," Shay said gathering her jacket. She looked over at everyone and gave an apologetic smile. "Thank you for having us all, I hope I all see you again soon. I had fun." She then also moved quickly out the door.

It left Keith, Shiro, Adam, Allura, and Romelle to gape in the confusion.

Matt walked into the room with a drink in his hand and frowned.

"Where did everyone go?" He asked, eyes darting around.

Keith felt so disjointed that he didn't even know what to do anymore. Nobody knew how to answer his question.

What the fuck had just happened?

"What in the fuck?" Allura blurted out again. "Like? What the fuck?" She sounded mad. Probably for Keith's sake. "What is that guy's _problem?"_ she said and it was obvious who she was talking about.

Keith had no idea what to think.

"He did not deserve that cocktail," Adam murmured under his breath.

"I..." Keith started. He was aching in a way he should not be aching, like he had just been dumped. "I think I'm gonna need another drink."

"I'll make you another cocktail," Shiro said getting to his feet.

"Make it strong," Keith shouted out to him, and groaned.

That stung more than he should have let it.

* * *

There was nothing more heart breaking to a parent than seeing your child suffering.

Vivian was wailing into his shirt, the sobs making her little body shake. The other people in the emergency room looked at him with sympathy. Nobody liked to see babies in the emergency room. Especially ones who were in obvious pain.

"Lance, I am so sorry," Veronica sniffled, watching her brother and niece helplessly as they waited for a doctor.

"Veronica, it was an accident. It's fine," he insisted, rolling onto the tips of his toes then back onto his heels in a loop to attempt to rock Vivian back into comfort.

"I should of - she just fell forward and -"

"It's okay Ron," Lance cut her off. He really didn't want to hear the story again of how Vivian lost balance and went head first into the corner of a table. "It's just a little bump," he said and spoke lulling Spanish to his daughter as she cried her lungs out.

But honestly? Lance was barely holding it together. Being here was bringing back real fucked up memories. He tried to tame his trembling, but it was just too soon to be in a hospital after what had happened...

"McClain?" A nurse called out, a sad smile on his face as he spotted the crying infant. Lance followed him without another second with Veronica (he was still a little drunk and needed her there just in case), leaving his worried friends in the waiting room to stew.

* * *

"I know it's frightening," the doctor smiled as she checked over the rather large bump on her forehead and did a few tests. Vivian was curled up in Lance's arm, sniffling as she sucked her thumb. "But I think she's okay, obviously a little sore. But she has no sign of concussion or head trauma." She looked to Veronica. "She didn't appear to pass or black out after the knock?" Veronica shook her head. The doctor hummed and looked back to Vivian, inspecting the lump one more time. "I think we've got a very lucky little girl here. I advise you put an ice pack wrapped in a towel on her head when you get home to reduce the swelling. If you notice any odd behaviour, or she appears to be in too much pain, bring her back in. But other than that, I think she's going to be just fine."

Lance exhaled in relief, holding his daughter tightly in his arms.

He'd never been so scared in his life.

* * *

"I still can't believe the _nerve_ of that boy," Allura spat they sat in the sunlit cafe, the warm ambiance and homely vibes contrasting to her sour mood.

It had been a week since the drinking gathering with Lance. Keith had gotten along with him so well and was ready to ask him out after a night of shameless flirting when he found out he was already in a relationship. Keith didn't even get to drill him about it, the importance of not being a total dickwad to his poor girlfriend, because straight after the phone call Lance had ran off.

Whatever.

Plenty of fish in the sea, right?

The vision of Lance as he spoke about his job at the aquarium flashed through his mind. 

"It's fine Allura," Keith insisted. It was just the harsh pang of disappointment and a twinge of humiliation coursing through him. He wasn't heart broken. He hadn't fallen helplessly in love with the guy he had just met. Keith had just been... interested. Very interested. He's just disappointed.

In this same moment, Pidge and Matt returned from the counter with drinks and sweet treats. Allura spoke again as they resettled themselves across from them. 

"No, it's _not,_ " Allura huffed. "He was flirting with you _all_ night and lead you on." She crossed her arms, elbows resting on the table.

"And he seemed so sweet..." Romelle trailed off sadly.

He had seemed sweet. Like he was too good to be true. In the end he had been.

"Well doesn't this sound like juicy gossip," Matt cut in after sipping on his straw. "Spill. Who are you talking about?"

"Who do you think? _Lance!_ " Allura seethed his name like it was poison on her tongue. Pidge's face twisted in aggravation. 

"Why are you talking shit about Lance? You know he's one of my best friends right?"

"You could've at least warned me he had a girlfriend," Keith mumbled, rolling his eyes at his own idiocy. 

"Woah, woah, _woah!"_ Matt said, hands shaking as Pidge gaped in disbelief. "Hang on, time out! Time out!"

"Lance, 100% does _not_ have a girlfriend," Pidge told them in a deadly serious voice. 

"Then who was he talking to on the phone?" Keith asked.

"Yeah! And left the party for?" Allura added.

Pidge and Matt looked at each other, faces blank until something seemed to click in their brains.

"Oh my god, you don't know." Pidge closed her eyes and shook her head. "No guys, Lance doesn't have a _girlfriend,"_ Keith, Allura and Romelle looked at each other in confusion. "Lance has a _daughter."_

Keith's eyes widened, a squeak escaped the back of his throat in pure shock while Allura's jaw dropped at the same time as Romelle's did.

"A... daughter?" Keith asked, trying to click pieces together. It all actually made sense. Why he hadn't been out drinking a lot, the lack of time... but then it just _didn't._ For starters, he was so young... Like, of course there was young parents out there and younger than Lance as well, he wasn't dumb, but he had never assumed Lance was one of them. 

"Yeah, he's got a child." Pidge said awkwardly.

"She's a baby. A _real_ baby. Like can't even walk yet _baby._ " Matt said. For some reason that was even more daunting. "She hit her head and Lance had to take her to the emergency room, hence why he left like he did so suddenly."

"Well I now feel like a terrible human being," Allura murmured. Keith also felt this way, they'd both been talking shit about him for a week and it was over something that wasn't even true.

Keith didn't know what to say. Lance had a kid? A very young kid? They'd spoken for two hours straight, and he hadn't even mentioned it once. But then, maybe their reactions were why. Lance's probably been dealing with that a lot lately, being so young and all. 

"He's a single dad?" Keith confirmed. Pidge sighed and nodded. She looked up at Keith carefully.

"Look, Keith," Pidge started. "Lance is a good guy, a _great_ guy. But he's had a lot of awful shit happen to him lately, I don't even know if he's even thinking of dating anyone for a while. He seemed to like you though, but he would also understand if you backed off. He gets some people just aren't ready to take on a guy with a child at this age. Vivian is the most important thing to him at the moment."

"Vivian," Keith echoed dumbly. Pidge nodded.

Keith wasn't sure how he felt, he liked Lance and was happy he wasn't some sleazy cheating asshole with a girlfriend, but a kid? A daughter? He wasn't sure if he was ready for that kind of commitment. He'd never really had the best family life to go by example. 

Being in the Foster system for five years had made him feel weird about families, despite being the one thing he wanted more than anything growing up.

"Uh..."

"I think Keith's short circuited," Allura mused.

"I will tell you one thing Keith," Pidge said, voice turning terrifyingly serious. "Don't you dare go after him if you aren't sure about how you feel about him having a kid. Lance cannot afford to get his heart broken. He's gone through enough shit as is."

Keith gulped and nodded.

He wasn't sure what he felt or how he felt about it.

Lance was a father?

* * *

A week after what had been dubbed _the coffee table incident,_ Vivian was back to her giggling adorable self. Although she had a bruise on her head and a lump that was almost invisible now, she was happy and not in any more pain. Lance was beyond relieved by the improvement and had been keeping a very close eye on her to make sure she was comfortable at all times. 

They were both on the ground, Lance on his stomach and Vivian sitting upright in front of his face. She giggled as her hands went through his hair, ruffling it up between her tiny fingers. 

He chuckled, pointing a single finger at her, using it to give an affectionate caress to her arm.

Nine months ago, he couldn't imagine being a father any time soon, the thought hadn't even been on Lance's radar. But now he couldn't even fathom not having Vivian in his life.

She used Lance's head to prop herself up, standing awkwardly on shaky legs. She was getting a little adventurous with standing, which was why they had both ended up in the emergency room. Veronica said she'd been trying to stand but lost her balance and banged her head. It however hadn't deterred the little girl from trying since the accident.

"You're one brave little cookie _mija,_ " he told her and chuckled as she squawked in delight, as if to say _'look at me papa! I'm doing it!'_

Lance phone dinged from the coffee table. He untangled Vivian's hands from his hair and sat her down by her toys to distract her as Lance checked his phone.

**_Luis  
How is she going?_ **

Lance shot back a message, telling his big brother of their progress. A part of him was hoping the message was going to be from Keith. But he hadn't heard from the tattoo artist since the night of the get together. Lance had sent him a message the next day apologising for leaving so suddenly, but he never got a reply.

Lance sighed. He should have known Keith would lose interest after meeting and talking to him properly. He was probably well aware of Lance's situation, not doing him any favours either. 

But Lance had liked talking to Keith, had felt a genuine connection forming. He made Lance feel nervous and at ease at the same time.

Even if Keith didn't want to date him, he hoped they could at least be friends. Lance had been through a lot of crap lately, he could use all the friends he could get.

It was all probably wishful thinking anyway. He needed to be thinking of Vivian, not of dating. He could worry about that sort of thing when she was older.

* * *

Keith slammed his head against the bar counter, groaning.

"It can't be that bad," Adam said curtly. "You can't like him _that_ much. You spoke to him for a total of two hours. Plus, didn't we decide Lance was a jerk who's got a girlfriend?"

Shiro sighed and shook his head.

"Apparently not. Turns out he's actually got a child," Shiro explained and Keith groaned loudly at the reminder.

"Well if anything you dodged a bullet. You can barely look after yourself, how would you be able to help raise a kid?" Adam scoffed. He really did have Keith's best intentions at heart, he was just so blunt and logical and _right._ Keith wouldn't know how to help raise a child. 

Keith was still going to pout about it.

"You're really hung up on this one, huh?" Shiro sympathised, leaning against the bar top.

"He's just-" Keith closed his mouth, cutting himself off. It's hard to explain. Keith was the type of person who rarely opened up to people, especially strangers. For him to be speaking to some random guy who passed out on the floor of his workplace like they were old friends was a big deal. Them flirting had made it even more abnormal. Even more so because it was reciprocated.

People like Lance didn't come around too often for people like Keith. 

Keith groaned, putting his head in his hands. He had never been good with words or emotions. Blame the childhood trauma. 

"Oh god Keith, it's pitiful just watching you. Let me make this simple for you." Keith raised his head to Adam. "Let's just have another group gathering. Get him to bring his daughter along. You'll see how shit it is, cry for an hour on the bathroom floor, wipe your tears, thank god it wasn't you who got someone pregnant, and then move on. The kid will scream and cry and crap everywhere and you'll be thanking your lucky stars."

Keith frowned.

"You're kind of an asshole," he told him. 

"Better to put your crush in the grave now while you can before you get too invested," Adam told him bluntly, ignoring his statement.

He hated how Adam was always right.

Keith sighed, lifted his phone and pulled up his conversation with Pidge. 

"What are you doing?" Shiro asked.

"Organising this shit. Time to bury my crush."

* * *

"Oh, the poor thing," Nyma pouted after Lance retold the story about Vivian to her. They were both on their break, sitting in the Aquarium's small cafe. Nyma was his favourite co-worker. The one he always liked to gossip with. Plus she liked kids and hearing about all of his baby drama.

"It was awful," Lance shook his head, trying to shake out the memory. "But she's okay. Just a little bump now."

"She's got a good dad to nurse her back to health. You should bring her over some time again, I miss that kid."

Lance had a dilemma with Day Care one day and they wouldn't allow her in for the day, some sort of payment issue. So Lance was forced to bring his 4 month old with him to work. He strapped her to his chest in a baby carrier while he gave tours around the Aquarium. Vivian became a crowd favourite instantly with his groups.

Thankfully, Lance hadn't had any issues with his new daycare, so he didn't have to worry about bringing her in. Plus, he had his mother and other family members ready to help out if need be.

"We'll definitely have to organise something. You and Rolo should come over to visit!"

"Oh, he would love it," she snickered. Rolo was a good guy, the shaggy skateboard and surfer type. For someone who rides huge waves and couldn't care less about flying in the air after skating down a ramp, he was a big wuss when it came to babies. He had been scared to hold Vivian for the first time. But once the baby fell asleep, Rolo had fallen a little in love. Vivian had that effect on people.

A ding from inside Lance's pocket made him hesitate. For a second, Keith flashed through his mind, but when he saw a message from Pidge he sighed.

"Not who you wanted?" Nyma asked smugly.

"Not exactly," he murmured.

"Who is it? Don't tell me you're seeing someone?"

"His name is Keith, and god no. I mean, we flirted a little, but I haven't heard from him in over a week. I'll probably never see him again. It doesn't matter anyway. I'm not really in a 'single and ready to mingle' situation right now, with Vivi and all."

"He knows about her?" she asked and Lance frowned a little to himself as he thought over that question. 

"I think so?"

"You _think?"_ she asked, an amused breath leaving her mouth.

"I assume he knows, Pidge or Matt probably mentioned it to him." Lance murmured, opening the message from Pidge.

**Pidge:  
we're planning another group get together  
** **you in?**

Lance sighed to himself. He didn't want to burden Veronica after last time's traumatising ordeal. And his parents were out of town...

**You:  
** **idk  
** **i don't think i have any1 to look after Vivi**

The three little dots appeared.

**Pidge:  
** **They said to bring her**

Lance pursed his lips together, thinking. Another message dinged through before he could think of a reply.

**Pidge:  
** **Keith will be there**

Keith? Lance sucked in a breath. 

**You:  
** **I don't think he'd want me there all that much  
** **he never replied to my last message**

There was silence for a few minutes. Lance looked at the time on his phone. Their break would be over soon.

**Pidge:  
** **he's an idiot  
** **but he's also the one who organised this** **and asked me to invite you**

Lance wasn't sure how he felt about how his heart jumped excitedly at hearing that. He pushed that back. He doesn't need to be pining after some attractive man, but it wouldn't hurt to be friends with him...

**You:  
** **okay then  
** **i'll come and bring vivi  
** **are people drinking?**

Lance wasn't sure how he felt about taking his daughter into a room would a bunch of drunk people he's only met a couple of times. He barely even spoke to anyone at the party other than Keith. 

**Pidge:  
** **shiro said it's gonna be a mocktail party  
** **there's gonna be a 16th at his bar in a couple of weeks so he wants to practice**

Well that took away one of Lance's worries.

**You:  
** **cool :)  
** **guess i'll see u then**

Lance put his phone down, noticing Nyma's slight grin.

"Well?"

"Looks like I am going to be seeing Keith again after all."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so a lot of you were curious about how Lance became a dad and where this kid's momma is.. well that will be answered next chapter! YAAAAAAAAAAYYY! 
> 
> Also what are your thoughts so far?!?! am I doing okay? I hope you're all actually liking this!
> 
> Anyways, I hope you have an amazing, safe and happy holidays! 
> 
> Love you all ❤❤❤


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> first update of the new year lets fucking riot with fluff

"Hunk, please tell me you're at Shiro and Adam's apartment," Lance whispered into his phone, rocking the pram back and forth at the bottom of the stairs. Nobody had told him the elevator wasn't working.

"Yeah I am, what's wrong?" Hunk asked.

"I brought the pram!" There was a pause on the other side of the line.

"Oh," Hunk said, obviously connecting the dots. "Do you need help?"

"I mean like, I don't know if we can lug it up by ourselves," Lance said looking up the staircase. Even if they did get it up, they would just have to take it back down, which was a whole other struggle. "Maybe I should get the capsule from the car..." He trailed off to himself.

"Do you need help Lance?" Hunk repeated.

"Uhh..." Lance was already spinning the pram around. "No, I'll be up in a few. Just let me race back to the car. Am I late?" Lance asked frantically. He didn't want everyone waiting on him just because there was no elevator.

"You're not late. Calm down," Hunk laughed fondly. "I'll see you in a few, alright?"

"Will do, man." Lance smiled, hanging up the phone to put it in his back pocket. "Okay sweetness, time for another little trip. _Weeeeeeee-_ "

* * *

"He'll be up in a minute," Hunk told the group. "He didn't realise the elevator wasn't working and he had the pram with him."

Shiro winced. "That's my bad, I didn't even think about that." Hunk waved it off.

"It's okay, he was more worried about being late."

Keith didn't think you _could_ be late for these types of things. It was more of a 'show up at around this time and leave when you want to' type of thing. They were all just hanging out in Shiro's living room, some on the couch, some on the arm chairs and the rest had just grabbed chairs from the dining table. It was hardly formal.

But he's not focusing on that, he's more thinking of Lance's arrival in general. How big was this baby? Could it speak? Crawl? Was it capable of even sitting up on its own? Keith had no clue. Knew nothing about babies or how to interact with them.

He also felt guilty. Keith had literally gotten Pidge to invite Lance so it could psyche himself out of crushing on the guy because of his kid.

Keith was a horrible person.

The worst part though was that Keith seemed to be the only one nervous about his - _their_ \- arrival. If anything, the others were excited about it. Allura was practically vibrating in her seat with anticipation.

"How old is she?" Allura asked from the couch to the side of the room who had met the baby before. This included, Hunk, Shay, Pidge and Matt.

"Nine months, right?" Pidge asked, turning to Hunk and Shay who both nodded in confirmation.

Nine months... Keith had no idea what that entailed.

"That's so sweet," Allura crooned, like she knew exactly what it entailed.

"You're a fan of babies, huh?" Pidge asked. Allura nodded enthusiastically.

"Yes! They're so adorable! Will she let me hold her, or is she not a fan of strangers?" she asked, hopefully.

"She'll definitely let you hold her, she's a McClain in that sense, very social," Hunk said.

So that's Lance's last name? McClain. It suited him.

Allura was happy with that answer, grinning at Romelle excitedly.

Keith went on his phone for a few minutes after that, unable to hear anymore baby talk. He was already feeling guilty, he wasn't in the mood for that to worsen.

He only put his phone down when there were a few knocks at the door and then the creak of it opening.

"It's just me!" Lance said from the other room.

"We're all in here!" Shiro called out, and a few seconds later Lance was walking in the room, cheeks slightly flushed and hair a little scruffy. He was a fitted 3/4 shirt that again accentuated that slim waistline and broad shoulders that had been circling Keith's mind far too often than he'd ever admit. He had a backpack flung over his shoulder and in his hand was a bulky handheld carrier.

There was a child in there. Lance's child.

"Those stairs are a work out, huh?" Lance laughed lightly, hand ruffling through his soft curls.

"I'm sorry about the elevator," Shiro said straight up. Lance didn't seem fussed.

"No worries, man. Now let's introduce you to everyone, yeah?" Lance said, looking down into the carrier.

_Ah crap, it's happening._

Lance put the carrier on the ground, alongside the bag and crouched to reach inside it. Allura leaned forward to sneak a peek while Keith wished he could sink into the couch and never resurface.

"Oh my goodness," Allura whispered under her breath as Lance raised his daughter up, placing the little girl on his hip.

Keith knew exactly why Allura said that, the baby girl in Lance's arms was like a tiny, female replica of Lance. Same shade of skin, with the biggest, brightest blue eyes. The only difference between the two was their hair colour. His daughter's hair was a few shades darker, a deep, dark chocolate colour.

The kid was freaking adorable.

"Now," Lance started, looking at his daughter in his arms. "You know Hunk, Shay, Pidge and Matt," he informed her, shifting to get her to look in their direction. A little noise left her mouth at spotting the familiar faces, smile spreading across her chubby cheeks. Allura beside Keith cooed at the sight.

Okay, looks like 9 month old babies can't talk.

"Over here," he said softly as he turned. "Is Adam and Shiro." He then faced the couch and pointed to them. "That's Allura and Romelle over there, and next to them is Keith." The baby wasn't even looking in their direction, instead at her father's hand. Her little arm extended out to grab his finger, a small giggle leaving her mouth as she did. "And everyone, this is Vivian."

Okay, okay. She was pretty cute, and Lance looked like an adorable doting father. That's fine. Keith could handle that. All he had to do was wait for Vivian to crack it and start screaming and Keith would be fine, ready to move on.

"Now, would somebody like to hold her because I really have to pee," Lance chuckled. The whole room turned to look at Allura.

"I think Allura would fight someone to be able to hold her first," Shay giggled. Lance was more than complying, already walking over to Allura on the couch who was buzzing next to him with excitement.

"Hello Vivian!" Allura cooed as Lance handed her over. When she placed the girl on her lap, Vivian stared up at her in wonder. Her arms flailed as her father stepped back, probably wondering where he was going as Lance disappeared to the bathroom.

Keith dared to glance towards Vivian. The girl was looking up at Allura with the brightest smile as stranger spoke to her.

"You are _the_ cutest thing, I think I'm going to steal you," she said sweetly as Vivian let out a high pitch noise of delight. "I'm glad you're happy about the arrangement. It's settled."

Romelle beside Allura giggled, using the tip of her finger to gently touch Vivian's cheek. Vivian's bright blue eyes followed the movement before she looked down to Allura's legs, obviously spotting the intricate ink on her thighs. Her small hand touched the flowers across her skin, making a confused little noise.

"I think I love her," Allura whispered, making the others laugh.

"She has that effect on people, even Pidge likes her and she _hates_ kids," Hunk told them all and Pidge proved the statement a firm nod of her head.

A few moments later, there was a click of the door and Lance was walking back into the room.

"Glad to see my daughter is still alive," he grinned in that sunny way that made Keith's heart do a little flip. Vivian's head turned in his direction, obviously hearing her dad's voice. He gave her a tiny wave as he moved and sat on a chair beside Hunk.

Keith didn't want to admit to himself that he wished Lance sat next to him.

"Oh she's gorgeous Lance!" Allura gushed as Vivian started to play with her long hair with curiosity.

"I don't think she's seen anyone with hair as long as yours, she might yank it," he warned with a soft look.

"I'd let her. She's too cute. This face could get away with murder."

"She uses it to her advantage," Hunk laughed. "She's got her dad wrapped around her finger." That made the group laugh and Lance go pink cheeked and smile reluctantly with a shrug, a sort of 'what can I say?'

There was something about there being a child in the room that made everyone a little more chill, a little quieter as they watched her play with Allura's hair. She saw Romelle's hair and started to play with hers too. Romelle beamed and practically shoved her hair into Vivian's hand. It was like they were all in a trance.

"She really likes to play with hair, does she usually play with her mother's hair too?" Allura asked casually. Allura's good at that, asking questions without directly asking them. Keith himself was curious about Vivian's mother, who had not been brought up in conversation. Pidge had said Lance was single, so maybe she just wasn't around, or didn't want to be a part of her daughter's upbringing. It would make sense as to why he was a single father. Mothers did that sometimes, left with no reason, only to come back into your life many years later. Keith had firsthand experience with that.

Lance gave a sad smile and turned to Pidge and Matt.

"You really didn't tell them anything, huh?" he chuckled, eyes not in it. Keith watched the siblings shrink in on themselves while Hunk and Shay looked away. Lance looked back to Allura and smiled gently. "No. You see, I'm actually not Vivian's biological father."

Keith and everyone's shocked reactions must've been evident by the way Lance grimaced.

Keith didn't understand how that was possible. They looked identical, a tiny little Lance with the same smile, facial features and most of all those bright blue eyes.

"Vivian's mother was my twin sister, Rachel. But uh..." Lance hesitated, looking strained. That gave Keith a bad feeling. "She passed away a couple weeks after Vivian was born."

"Lance," Allura started, apologetic. It trailed off into nothingness, _what could she say?_

Keith felt an instant and indescribable ache at seeing the pain through Lance's eyes. Keith glanced to Vivian who was completely unaware of her mother's death, probably didn't even remember her touch. Keith knew what it was like to be raised without a mother.

Keith's mother was never a part of his life as a child, but she came looking for him once he turned 18. She found him at 19 and they started to gradually rebuild their relationship.

Empathy rolled through his body as he realised Vivian would never get a chance like that. She would never know her mother except for the words from others.

Keith knew how unsatisfying that felt.

"I'd never wish for what happened to Rachel to happen, and if I could I would change positions in a heartbeat for Vivian to have her mother. But Vivi's the best thing to happen to me in a long time. So I'm grateful for the chance."

It was unfair how life worked sometimes. Lance was a good guy who certainly didn't deserve his sister dying, and there was Vivian, a baby who didn't deserve to lose her mother. Even Lance's sister, Keith didn't know her, but he knew no new mother deserved to die without watching their child grow up.

"She's lucky to have someone like you," Shiro told him, soft smile on his face. He knew from helping Keith through all his shit as a teenager how important it was to have that support.

Lance looked towards his daughter with a soft expression and smiled; genuine and sweet. Keith hated how his heart fluttered at the sight.

"I think it may be the other way around sometimes."

* * *

It was always a little awkward bringing up Rachel and Vivian's story with people. It tended to make things awkward, people would apologise and get in his face about it all, making it a little overwhelming. It's only a recent thing for him to be able to explain their situation without crying, so he was grateful when they all managed to flick back into normal conversation without going too deep into it.

He spoke a little more to Adam and Shiro today, getting to know them a little better since he hadn't had the chance last time. Apparently they met in college in the same business class and were getting married soon. They even owned a bar together. Lance congratulated them and asked about their preparations until they had to go make the mocktails.

Lance glanced over to Vivian, who was on the ground with Allura, Romelle and Shay. Shay held onto her hands as she shakily stood up. He smiled as they all cheered and Vivian made a happy noise.

Lance hummed happily to himself at the happy sight of his daughter. 

At remembering where Allura and Romelle were originally sitting, Lance looked over to see Keith sitting on the couch by himself. He was also watching Vivian on the ground, lips pursed in a straight line.

Taking a quick breath of courage, Lance made his way over and sat himself down. Two weeks ago Lance had spoken to Keith on this exact couch. The air felt very different around them; thick and awkward. Lance ignored it as he smiled to the other man who looked over at him in surprise.

"Hey Keith," Lance smiled. "How are you going?" Keith seemed hesitant before he answered.

"Lance, hi. I'm good. Yourself?" Short sentences, rickety, unsure of what to say. Lance felt sympathetic.

"Good." There's an air of silence. "I'm sorry I had to leave so suddenly last time. Duty calls," he said nodding over to Vivian's direction.

"No of course Lance. It's totally fine. I won't lie, I was a little pissed initially." Lance's eyes widened, a flare of anger alighting until Keith cleared it over. "I didn't know you were a dad, and I actually thought you had a girlfriend. I mean... we were kinda flirting so I was just confused."

"You thought my daughter was my girlfriend?" Lance questioned, a laugh slipping from his mouth. Also verbalisation of ' _yes, Lance you aren't crazy, Keith was totally flirting with you'_ was nice. 

"You said she was 'your special little lady'," Keith shot back in his defence, making Lance laugh properly this time. The misunderstanding was kind of hilarious and the blush it left Keith's face in added to the humour. Keith, Lance had a suspicion was one of those boldly honest people. It wasn't a bad thing.

"Okay, that one might have been my bad. Also I'm sorry I didn't mention it before, I assumed Pidge or Matt had told you. It's a hard topic to talk about." 

A slight sick feeling filled Lance's gut.

Keith was flirting with him _before_ he knew Lance had a daughter, but not afterwards. Lance knew the dating game was going to be tricky when he signed Vivian's guardianship papers. His friends and family warned him. He knew his top priority would be always Vivian and that some people wouldn't like that. Lance was okay with that, had accepted it.

He would just have to be okay with Keith being only a friend.

Disappointed, but not surprised.

"It's fine," Keith chuckled lowly, glancing back over to Vivian. "She's cute. I'm sorry about your sister."

"Thanks." He said for both things. A silence fell between them as they got distracted by Vivian's shrill of laughter as Matt lifted her into the air, zooming her around the room.

"Umm..." Keith started again, making Lance's head turn. "I got a pack of those bamboo straws, you know..." he chuckled awkwardly and rolled his eyes at himself. "Gotta save the turtles and all."

Lance couldn't help but grin.

Ah shit, he was _so_ screwed.

* * *

"I hate you," Keith growled, glaring across the table to Adam who rolled his eyes enough to cause a hurricane.

"It isn't my fault my plan didn't work."

"I hate you," Keith repeated, pressing his cheek against the wooden table.

Lance, Pidge, Matt, Hunk and Shay had left Shiro and Adam's apartment after a while. Vivian had fallen asleep so Lance decided that it was probably a good idea for him to leave, so the others decided they'd follow along.

But that was after him and Lance fell into conversation and Keith found himself deeper in the hole that was having a crush on Lance. The man with a daughter, who wasn't his biological daughter, but his sister's who had _died._

If that wasn't a complicated situation, he didn't know what was and that was coming from _him._

"I don't see what the problem is," Allura said, sitting on the corner of the dining table. "He's got a baby, so what? You like him, don't you?"

Everyone in the room twisted their heads to look at the woman.

"Well it makes things a little more complicated. Having a child is a big deal..." Shiro trailed off. 

"I suck with kids," Keith added. He was awkward enough with people his own age, let alone someone who couldn't even talk.

"You just haven't had much experience with children. Getting used to being around them is like inking a sketch. Patience and passion," Allura insisted with a warm smile.

"Don't use art against me. I can't accidentally _kill_ a drawing."

"I've seen you crumple thousands of sketches, don't talk to me about murder."

"Shiro's right though," Adam started, "-dating someone with a child makes things complicated. Keith is complicated enough on his own."

"Wow, thanks Adam."

"Complicated, but not impossible," Allura added in his defence. "It's just up to you and what you think you want. If you can't handle having a kid in the picture, you need to let Lance go so you can both look elsewhere." The matter of fact tone she spoke it made it seem simpler. Maybe it really was as easy as that.

It was figuring out whether Keith was ready to take a step like that. It wouldn't be the easy, or the convenient option to take, but he _liked_ Lance in the short amount of time they knew each other, and really wanted to get to know him.

It's not like he didn't like kids. In fact, the thought of having one of his own someday felt like an unreachable dream. It was something he wanted when he was older. Was he ready to date someone who had a child _now?_

"He's also got to be willing to make sacrifices," Adam said. "He won't be at the top of Lance's priority list."

That was true, and it wasn't like Keith was a particularly _needy_ person, but he knew he could be a hard nut to crack. Time and patience would be needed in allowing him to be fully comfortable. Maybe Lance wouldn't have enough time to give for that to happen?

"I think," Romelle started, gaining everyone's attention instantly since she had been silent throughout the whole debate. "You look happy with Lance. And Lance looked happy with you. Happiness is worth the shot, right?"

A small smile curved on Keith's face, barely noticeable, but there all the same.

 _Yeah,_ he thought to himself. _Maybe happiness was worth a shot._

* * *

It was one of those rare afternoons Lance had to himself. Vivian was with his parents for the day since he was working and they had planned to have dinner together. So, with some time to spare he went home to take a nap (sweet, sweet uninterrupted sleep). After that, he decided he would take advantage of the warm weather and walk to his parent's house (bonus of saving petrol). He couldn't wait for a home cooked meal. Looking after a baby took up a lot of time, so Lance didn't always get enough time to cook his own meals. He's lucky he's got his family looking out for him, otherwise he'd be very dead from malnutrition. 

He cut through the park on the way to his parent's place, not only was it quicker, but way prettier. Lance regularly came down to the park with Vivian, sometimes just to get fresh air and sit on the lawns. There was a small children's play equipment area. He'd put her on the swings sometimes and went on the tiny slide with her. Lance was as long as the slide itself, so it wasn't the most enjoyable thing ever, but Vivian liked it so of course he would go down another twenty times.

He remembered Rachel once saying that when Vivian was old enough, she wanted to take her to the park every weekend like their parents had done for them when they were young. 

Lance was thinking back on fond memories when he spotted a dark figure, hunched over on the lawn. He blinked twice and squinted.

"Keith?" He called out, stepping closer. The man lifted his head and a glowing smile spreads across Lance's face as he realised he was correct. Sitting on a patch of soft, green grass was Keith. Lance almost walked straight passed him, not used to seeing his arms covered up with a large white hoodie. His hair was tied back off his face as he hovered over a sketchbook that was perched on his lap, even his bangs were held back with clips. 

He felt an instant giddiness arise, just seeing him now planted a smile on Lance's face. He's aware Keith was no longer interested in him because he's a dad, but his heart still liked the sight of the man, still got all jittery. His heart apparently doesn't give a fuck.

Keith's eyes raised up in a slight glare, but softened when he saw Lance.

"Lance," he said simply, a smile forming as he sat up a little straighter from his position.

"I thought that was you! What's up?" Lance said, taking a few steps closer but paused when he heard a low grumble. Lance wasn't sure how he missed it, but sitting behind Keith was a huge dog, like Fenrir _huge_. Lance's eyes widened, leaning backwards slightly. "Dude I hope that's your dog, otherwise we're both about to become chow."

Keith's brows scrunched in obvious confusion before he glanced over his shoulder and frowned.

"Down boy," he murmured softly, which was enough for the dog to sit back down. He extended a hand towards the dark coated dog, and by the way Keith's hand doesn't get torn off, Lance assumed that it was his. "Sorry, Kosmo is a bit of a grump," he said as he retracted his hand from Kosmo's head. "Totally harmless though. Wouldn't hurt a fly."

Lance nodded. "I'm very glad about that. Are you aware your dog is abnormally large? What breed is he? Wolf and elephant?" Lance asked. Keith chuckled, leaning back a bit to be able to look up easier.

"Close, Leonberger, Alaskan Malamute mix. You should see him stand up." Keith turned over his shoulder to look at Kosmo. "Up, boy." With the simple command Kosmo was on his feet, having Lance gaping.

"What kind of drugs did you pump into that thing?" he asked Keith as Kosmo walked over to him, tail wagging slowly, obviously realising Lance wasn't a threat. "He's not gonna rip my arm off, right?" Lance asked cautiously, watching Kosmo closely.

"He's more likely to lick you to death," Keith snickered, putting his sketchbook and a chunk of rock looking stuff on top, black smeared over his fingertips. Lance bent down to the dog's level, extending his hand for Kosmo to sniff. He did tentatively for a moment before giving Lance's hand a warm lick.

"I feel like I just passed a test," Lance grinned, scratching below Kosmo's big, fluffy ear.

"You have, congratulations, he likes you."

"Winning at life," Lance said, sitting on the lawn so he A) didn't have to squat and B) could sit next to Keith. "So what brings you to the park on this lovely day?" Lance asked, a little chuckle escaping his mouth as Kosmo sat down, his head now resting on Lance's thigh.

Keith took a moment to answer, seemingly in a daze. "Oh, yeah. I like to come here and sketch sometimes. It's nice to get out of the parlour or from my desk at home. Clears the head a little."

"Is that what that rock stuff is?" Lance asked, earning a confused scrunch of the nose from Keith. He pointed to the rock looking thing on top of his sketchbook. Keith's face loosened, amused smile curving his lips.

"Charcoal?" He asked, picking it up and holding it out to Lance.

"Yeah, that!" He took a closer look at it. "You can draw with that stuff?"

"More or less, here," he picked up his sketch book and opened it to a page, showing the scenery of what appeared to be his view of the park. The trees were in perfect place, a pond in the background and the path leading towards the children's play equipment.

"Wow," Lance droned out in awe.

"Flick through if you like. They're just sketches, so don't expect any masterpieces."

"You don't mind? I had a friend in high school and she threatened to set me on fire if I tried to look in her sketch book." A knowing smile spreads across Keith's face, a warm and deep laugh leaving his mouth.

"I was the same in high school, even when I started doing tattoos I hated people looking at my stuff. You kind of get used to it though. It's my job, so it makes sense. I don't mind so much anymore."

Lance flicked through the pages carefully, trying his best to be cautious of not touching anything or ripping the paper. There were a lot of landscapes, some interior stuff like bedrooms and an assortment of objects.

"You've put a lot of time into this huh? You say these are just sketches but they're so good. I couldn't even imagine how much time you've put into practicing," Lance told him, observing a 'sketch' of a glass filled with water. "I bet you were the quiet kid in the back of the classroom drawing Naruto and Goku."

"Actually, it was Sailor Moon and Pokémon, I was not the basic quiet drawing kid, I was the basic quiet _gay_ drawing kid." Lance laughed, feeling his eyes crinkle and that giddiness grow.

"If it makes you feel better I was the basic Bi theatre kid that refused to admit they were bi until college," Lance snickered.

"I can see it now, did you try assert your 'straightness' with sport as well?"

"Baseball and swim team, man" Lance admitted making Keith chuckle, head dipping back.

Lance smiled as he watched Keith laugh, eyes on the sky. Lance noticed how it was beginning to change colour, blues turning into soft oranges. "I think I should go, I need to go get Vivi from my parents place," Lance murmured, his voice and words seemingly catching Keith's attention.

"Of course, want me to walk with you?"

_Oh Keith, what you do to my bi heart._

"Y-you really don't need to do that," Lance stammered, feeling embarrassed by the way he averted his eyes away.

"Lance," Keith started, waiting until Lance looked back at him. "It's just an excuse to spend more time with you." Keith actually had the audacity to chuckle at the way Lance blanched, face going a deep red.

"Oh," he whispered. He could hear Rachel laughing at him, throwing popcorn at him from the heavens and shouting ' _boo you dumbass loser! Where's your game?'_

"Is that okay?"

"Totally!" Lance blurted out loudly. Keith grinned as he stood up and held a hand out for Lance to take, using those massive arms of his to pull him to his feet like he was weightless.

"Lead the way?" Keith looked way too smugly for it to be good for Lance's heart. He nodded dumbly, pressing his lips together to force himself not to fall into an even dumber smile. He's so freaking smitten. 

Kosmo, to Lance's surprise, walked obediently beside Keith without the aid of a leash. 

"So, Vivian's is with your parents, huh?" Keith started as they walked along the path that had been smoothed over by the continuous use of shoes and the wheels of strollers and bicycles. "Are you close with your family?"

"As close as you can be," Lance said, staring at his feet as he walked. "We all grew up really close. My parents are really involved with their grandchildren. Vivian isn't the only one, there are also my brother's kids; Nadia and Sylvio." Lance stopped, he was totally blabbering. How boring. He'd been told in the past by previous relationships he needed to stop going on so many tangents, so sometimes he becomes hyper aware he's doing it.

"It is nice though," Keith smiled. "Having your family around to help out and all. Do they look after her often?"

"I'm incredibly lucky to have them." Lance doesn't even think he can begin to describe how truly lucky he is to have such a supportive network. The first few months of having Vivian in his care were quite literally _hell._ He never would have gotten this far if weren't for them. "They sometimes look after her while I'm at work. But the days they can't I usually take her to day care. Expensive shit that is, I try to avoid it but sometimes you don't have not much of a choice. Especially if Hunk's not around."

"What about your other friends?"

Lance laughed. "Like Pidge? I couldn't do that to her. She'd have a nervous breakdown."

"Okay, that's probably true. I can see that."

"What about your family?" Lance asked. Now that he thought about it, he didn't really know much about the guy. He knew where Keith worked, that he was of good artist, had an enormous dog who look more like a miniature Pony and that had and older brother; Shiro. That, however was the extent of his 'Keith trivia'.

"Well, you know Shiro, he's basically my big brother,"

"Basically?"

"Yeah." A strained expression passed across his face. Evidence found in the way his mouth scrunched together. "Technically Shiro is my foster brother. He's been looking out for me for as long as I can remember though. I dropped he 'fosters' part a long time ago."

"I didn't know you were a foster child." Lance felt like self-absorbed piece of shit. He really didn't know anything about Keith at all.

"It's not the best icebreaker, believe it or not." Keith said with humorous tone. The way he said it made it seem like Lance hadn't offended him, so he exhaled an amused breath.

"I think I might understand where you are coming from there," Lance chuckled back.

"You're not going to ask?" Keith's brow arched up at the question. "Usually everybody wants to know the whole sob story."

"As I said, I understand where you're coming from. People you barely know all up in your business. Then they give you that _pitying_ look like your life sucks. If you wanted to tell me you would have told me already, or at least waited until you were comfortable. I mean," Lance laughed airily, "-I've known you for what? A couple of weeks? I don't think I have the right to ask you those kind of questions. It's private. You're not obligated to tell me shit."

Keith nodded, obviously thinking about Lance's words. Lance locked his hands behind his back.

"Besides," he started again, "you haven't drilled me about the shit going on in my life. Actually, I'm pretty grateful for it. It's nice to just talk somebody about fun stuff. Maybe that's why I didn't tell you and the others about Vivian or Rachel. It was nice just to talk to people who didn't know. That didn't walk around me like glass. Flinching whenever someone even mentions the word 'death'."

There was a pause in the conversation, the chirp of the birds and voices of other people, children laughing as they play and the chatter among adults saving them from complete silence.

_That's it Lance, you officially have scared the guy away._

"It had confused me at the start, why you didn't tell everyone about Vivian," Keith admitted, eyes ahead. "Now looking at it the I way I do for my own situation I get that. It's like everybody wants to remind you of your own hardships, when really all you want to do is to move on."

"Somehow, you know how to read my mind."

"Great minds tend to think alike." 

"Great, fractionally traumatised from events minds."

" _Jesus_ ," Keith wheezed, a full grin spreading as he chuckled, shaking his head is dismay. "Dark."

"Not all of us have slick sleeves of tattoos to make us look edgy. I have to use my wits."

"Uh huh," Keith smiled, not sounding too convinced. "You're very edgy. The epitome of it. Especially when you kept telling me how attractive you find my tattoos." That smile of Keith's, dipping in being smug was dangerous. 

Lance gasped in mock offense. "Drunk me told you that in _confidence_. Meaning it was _never_ to be spoken of again. "

"No, you told me that tipsy on vodka and because 'my muscles make you nervous'."

He ignored how red his face went at the reminder of his tipsy self's lack of filter. "And here I was, hoping you'd forgotten about that."

"I'd never forget such vital information."

"What's so vital about it?"

A grin so dangerous and wild made Lance flush as it was directed his way. "Well I've got to win you over and score myself a date somehow, don't I?"

The words sent a hot wave from Lance's face down all the way south until it reached his toes. He didn't even want to imagine his complexion, it probably a hideous red, as well as a reminder of his lost game. Before, Lance was the one who was causing these types of flustered expressions. He wasn't quite used to it. A slightly distressed noise squeaked at the back of his throat.

"Was that too forward?" Keith asked, looking concerned in a genuine way. "Sorry that was too much wasn't it? I... uhmm..." Keith scratched his scalp, eyes lowering to look at Kosmo, like he was going to save his owner from the situation he had put himself in

"No! _No!_ It's not that. I'm just..." Keith looked to him as Lance blubbered, hands wringing nervously. "I just wasn't expecting that."

"Oh."

Lance wasn't sure how it happened so quickly, but the air turned thick and uncertain. They both walked in silence for a few long strides. Lance wanted to bash his head against a wall until it knocked this memory out of his head.

"Can I ask then, what you were expecting?"

"Huh?"

"You said you weren't expecting ' _that_ '. What did you mean by ' _that_ '?"

Lance blinked.

"What I meant? Well..." he wasn't sure he could say it without it coming across as rude. "It's just... once people find out that I'm a dad they tend to run for the hills. Most people at this age don't want that sort of responsibility, that sort of... hold back." Lance interlocked his fingers together. "I just assumed you were probably one of those people."

Another long pause, another moment of silence filled with hesitance and tension that probably couldn't be sliced even with a chainsaw it was that thick.

"I'll be real with you Lance," Keith started after recollecting his thoughts. "It kind of did freak me the fuck out." Lance winced. "Take it maybe for our age, the commitment, or the lack of experience I've had in a family dynamic. It's not really convenient, and all I really don't know anything about kids." A cold wash of disappointment splashed over Lance's face. _Here we go._ "But," Lance glanced to the side a t Keith, a dribble of hope floating among the cold. "I think if I let you go without even trying, it might end up being something really, _really_ regret." 

Lance couldn't help but hold his breath, both their steps getting shorter and slower as they walked. His heart leaped against his chest as Keith tilted his head to look at him with a warm smile, eyes seemingly melting. 

"You having a child doesn't scare me off completely. It's a little scary, but not enough to make me want to run. As much as I love our friends, I'd really just like to take you on a date, just the two of us-" he cut himself off, eyes drifting upwards as if chasing a thought. "Or three, if you wanted to bring Vivian along."

Lance blinked owlishly. "You really wouldn't mind if I brought her on a date?" Lance asked, incredulous. Keith's brows scrunched together at the question.

"She's an important part of your life Lance. I think if I couldn't handle your kid that would probably be a deal breaker, right?"

Lance couldn't even reply with words or gestures. Not even one of the head. All he could do was just stare and blink like a freaking idiot. Lance just couldn't quite believe this was happening. Someone... someone was giving him a chance. _Keith_ was giving him a chance. A chance that Lance wasn't expecting, at least not for a long time. He thought he was going to have to hold his search on love until Vivian was in at least middle school, until she was a little more independent. But here Lance was, getting asked out by a man who knew only a small fraction about him, seemingly to only know the negatives of his live for the past year.

Lance's eyes began to sting at the same time as throat clogged up, aching in shock and disbelief.

_Lance, I know you're over the moon, but you cannot cry because a guy asked you on a date._

Lance smiled, albeit a little watery as Keith watched him closely, as if searching for a sign on his face of what his answer would be.

"Yeah," Lance laughed out, quickly wiping his knuckles over his eyes so Keith wouldn't notice them watering up. "It would probably be a deal breaker."

"So..." Keith trailed off, scrunching up his face nervously. Lance found it endearingly sweet. "You wanna hang out sometime? A date?" He shifted, shoving his hands into his pockets as he looked away, trying not to appear too excited, maybe even preparing himself for rejection and an awkward walk through suburbia to Lance's parent's house.

Lance smiled, cheeks aching at the sides.

The silence must've been torture, so Keith dared and glanced in Lance's direction, smiling himself a little.

"I think I'd really like that."

Keith grinned, a little lopsided but it had Lance swooning. 

"Shit, I can't believe that actually worked."

They both laughed as they continued to walk. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> did i mix two gigantic dog breeds together to make Kosmo the size of a miniature pony? yes, yes i did (according to google, leonberger males can get up to 80cm tall so that's how tall kosmo is uwu he big boyo)
> 
> also hi yeah congrats to the people who guessed it was Rachel who was Vivian's mother sad times. I didn't explicitly say it in this chapter, but she died of an illness that will be brought up later ✌
> 
> next time will feature adam and veronica roasting keith and lance and a klance date ❤


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's ~date time~

"What in the living hell is that Keith?"

Keith looked up from his book that was perched on his lap. His brother's fiancé stared down at him with scrunched brows and hands on his hips. Keith closed the book and read the cover.

"Parenting for Dummies."

"Parenting for-" He shook his hands, shaking away the rest of his sentence. "It doesn't matter what it's called. Why are you reading it?"

"I told you," Keith grumbled, putting the book down on the coffee table. "I'm going on a date with Lance and Vivian _may_ or may not be coming, so I need to-"

"No, no Keith," Adam interrupted, doing that wrist flick again. "I meant why are you reading _that_ book." He pointed to the cover. "The ages it discusses are 5-10."

"Oh," Keith said, stupefied. He looked back at the book. "Does it matter?"

"Keith," Adam said opening on a page and pointing to the title. "How to talk to your child about their feelings." Adam gave him a pointed look.

"That's important shit," Keith insisted.

"Keith, she's a baby. She can't speak."

"Oh," Keith blanched. He leaned back against the couch and groaned. "It was the only parenting book in a library I could find. I have no fucking clue what I'm doing. What do 10-month-old babies do? She can't walk, she can't really talk, what else do they do?"

"Eat, sleep, shit."

Keith groaned as he glared at the useless book. He felt like he was unprepared. What else was there for him to know? Adam was right, babies sleep a lot (Keith can't exactly teach a child to sleep). Then they played, cried, shit-

His eyes widened for a long moment. "Am I going to have to change dirty diapers?" he asked, expression of horror on his face and sound in his tone giving away his inner thoughts.

"How much do you like this guy?" Adam asked. 

At this point it was hard to say. But so far, each new minute he spent with Lance was another ounce of weight added to his pile of feelings. It was scary to admit, but he genuinely believed he and Lance could be something. That was at least if Lance liked him enough to keep him around. Keith assumed he liked him or at least saw potential in him, in _them,_ considering he had accepted to going on a date with him.

"It's early days, but I really like him."

"Then you're probably going to learn how to change a diaper at some stage." Keith hummed at Adam's words. It's not like he had a weak stomach, he worked with blood and needles. So, if Lance - a guy who passed out at the sight of a needle- could change a dirty diaper, so could Keith.

Well, at least he assumed. Hoped.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Adam asked and it was enough to make Keith reconsider for a second. Then after that second he remembered talking to Lance in the park, on the couch he was sitting on right now. He's pretty sure what they have is what is called chemistry, something deeper than words or physical attraction. With Lance it just felt... right. 

Keith nodded.

"Okay then," Adam said, Keith not hearing any resignation in his voice anymore. "For starters, calm down on the whole 'child' thing. You're acting like you're instantly becoming Vivian's father figure. Lance isn't expecting that. Nobody expects that of you. Honestly, it'd be fucking weird if you did. If you guys _do_ end up becoming serious, then he'll teach you what you need to know. But for now, just take the boy on a date and see where it goes. Don't think too hard about it or you're going to psyche yourself out for real this time."

Keith thought over Adam's words. Alongside Shiro, he was one of the only people in the world whose advice he actually followed. He was good at it, perspective. Keith trusted his word, so what he was saying to Keith now made sense. He was overthinking it without a need to be. It was just a first date, he only needed to focus on Lance and not the surrounding obstacles they may have to face later on.

"Thanks Adam," Keith smiled.

"Don't worry about it, Keith. It'll all work out the way it's supposed to."

"Yeah..." Keith trailed off. He then remembered something as Adam turned to walk away. "About this date, I was hoping you could pull some strings for me."

* * *

"You're glowing," Nyma grinned as they sat down at their favourite cafe. Vivian was sat on her lap, enjoying the way Nyma's hands played with the soft tuft of hair on her head. It had been a while since Nyma had seen his daughter, so she was coddling her to make up for lost time.

"Really?" Lance asked, smile still edging on his cheeks. He just hadn't been able to _stop_ smiling. He and Keith had been texting a lot, he was even going on a date with the guy! He hadn't felt this excited over someone in a long time, and that was saying something because his overdramatic ass thought every second person he spoke to was going to be his future wife or husband.

Nyma smirked knowingly. "Uh-huh. So you and that guy talking again or something?"

"Keith," Lance said in a dream drenched tone.

"Oh wow, you really are glowing. So he finally decided to text you back?"

"He asked me on a date."

"And you accepted?" She asked, smiling as Lance nodded. "He sounds eager. I'm excited for you, seriously. You deserve to be happy. But if he hurts you I think he's going to have a horde of people after his head," she added which made Lance chuckle.

"Don't I know it. I don't think he would, but I also don't want to get too excited, it might not work out."

"But it _might,"_ Nyma grinned.

"It _might._ " Lance smiled back giddily. "He's so sweet, you know he said I could bring Vivian on the date if I couldn't find someone to look after her." Nyma let out a low whistle; impressed. "I know. Most guys wouldn't be cool with that."

"Are you going to take her? Put him through the 'daddy material test'."

"Ew," Lance laughed, shaking his head. "That phrasing really would scare him off."

"Well are you?"

"Going to take her?" Lance asked. She nodded. "I kinda want to go alone -" he looked to his daughter, "-no offence Vivi." He paused. "I think it would be nice for him to get to know me first, before he gets to know 'papa Lance'."

Vivian cooed and extended her hand across the table as far as it would go. Lance put his hand out, letting her take his finger. It was a small habit they were both forming together, both of them getting a sense of comfort from it. Reassurance.

"Would you like me to take her then? Rolo and I could look after her while you go on your date," Nyma suggested. Lance opened his mouth to ask if she was sure when Nyma cut him off. "I'm serious, so don't ask me if it's okay. I wouldn't have offered otherwise. She's literally the most unproblematic baby to ever exist. We can handle it." He opened his mouth again and she rolled her eyes. " _Lance_ ," she grumbled.

"Okay, okay... thank you."

"No worries. Vivian and I are going to have a girly night. Watch a movie, talk about how men ain't shit, paint our nails... Rolo can just sit in the corner or something."

"Sounds like a great time," Lance said, shaking his fingers to make Vivian's hand move along. "Doesn't it Sunshine?" Vivian giggled at his tone, pulling his hand until his fingers were in her mouth. "Is this revenge for not allowing you to come on my date?" He asked, pulling his now slobbery finger out of her mouth, watching her make an unimpressed face and a noise.

"See! Not even a single tear! Unproblematic!" Nyma giggled, turning Vivian to face her, sitting her up so she was now standing on Nyma's legs. "Isn't that right?" she asked her in a way that made her erupt into a fit of laughter. Nyma peered around Vivian's body with a smirk. "See? We're gonna have an amazing girl's night!"

"With Rolo."

Nyma sighed sadly. "With Rolo."

* * *

Keith's phone beside him dinged, the name that appeared on the screen making him smile.

"This freaks me out, it really does," Pidge murmured, also looking at the person who had just sent him a message.

Keith couldn't help but roll his eye as he picked up his phone, unlocking and going into the message Lance had just sent him.

**Lance:**   
**Just wanted to let you know that I got a friend to look after Vivian**   
**Hope that doesn't mess with your plan**

Keith could feel Pidge staring at him, eyes trying to somehow crack the code on what the message could have entailed. "Then don't worry about it, it really isn't any of your business to begin with."

"None of my business?" Pidge raised her voice, astounded by his words. She threw the PS4 controller beside her on the couch. "I'm the one that introduced you to each other. If it ends badly then it's indirectly my fault!" Keith scoffed. "I'm serious!"

"Don't give yourself so much credit. We get along. We're going on a date. It's not life or death. It's not that serious yet." He wasn't going to mention that he had almost had an existential crisis over it himself.

"Adam told me you were reading parenting books." _Bastard._ "How is that not serious? I didn't even think you wanted children full stop."

"I never said I didn't want kids. I just didn't think I would have the opportunity." Pidge's silence after that was unsettling, she knew his past as well as Shiro. He sighed, already know what the expression she was holding. He saw concern on her face through her eyes and an unsure pout. "Hey," he said softly, deciding to take with with a different approach. "I'm not planning on hurting him. I actually think I really like him,. You know that doesn't happen often for me. I'm not going to throw him away like trash."

Pidge's eyes dropped. "I know that. And it's not just Lance I'm worried about. I care about you too, you know?"

"I know, thank you Pidge."

Defeated, she grabbed the controller and looked back to her screen, no longer wanting to discuss the issue. He was grateful, but as one of his oldest friends he wished that she would be a little more supportive. Maybe if it wasn't for the situation Lance was in, she might have been. Or maybe if it wasn't for the situation Keith had been in the past. He knew she had good intentions at heart, she just really didn't want either of her friends to end up heartbroken. But it was a risk Keith was willing to take.

Keith began to text his reply.

 **Keith:**  
 **no that is fine  
** **pick you up at 8??**

He bit his lip anxiously as he waited for a reply.

**Lance:**   
**are you going to tell me where we're going or is this going to be a surprise?**

He bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from smiling to save his friend from the grief of seeing.

**Keith:**   
**Depends, do you like surprises?**

The three dots came up immediately.

**Lance:**   
**as much as I love turtles**   
**surprise me**

* * *

Surprise me.

Sur - _fucking_ \- prise me.

Who said that shit? Who said that about going on a first date?

Lance, that's fucking who!

Now he's stressed that he may dress too formerly, or on completely on the other end of the spectrum and he might be under dressed. Maybe they were going to a movie and he want to dress comfortable, a little on the warmer side so he didn't get cold during the film. Or maybe they would be going for a restaurant and would need to dress lighter. Maybe they were going to do something adventurous? Was Keith adventurous? Who the hell knows? Not Lance, that's for sure!

"You're freaking out, aren't you?" Veronica's voice came over the speaker of Lance's phone that was on top of the kitchen counter.

"I'm fine! I'm cool! I know how to date, I've been on plenty before. _Heaps!_ I know this first date rodeo like the back of my hand."

"Then why do you have your 'panic voice' on?"

"Because I haven't been on a date in a year and I'm _freaking_ out!"

"First of all, take a deep breath and calm down," there was a pause, "Lance, do it." The demand was clear. He inhaled and exhale audibly so she would hear it. "Good. Now for clothing, I say it's safe to go smart-casual. I suggest that short sleeved, black and white striped button up shirt you have with your gray pants."

"Which gray ones?"

"The tighter ones, your ass will distract him from your obnoxious personality."

"Hilarious," Lance said, grabbing his phone and now making his way to his bedroom where his clothes were. He gathered the clothes his sister suggested and put them on, giving himself a quick once-over in mirror. He undid the first few buttons on his shirt. "I mean I don't look _terrible."_

"Good, now I'm going to hang up and leave you to it. Have fun on your date," she droned like she wasn't the one who called him in the first place.

" _Wait!"_ Lance shouted, panic rising. "I'm nervous," he admitted to her, biting the inside of his lip. There was a soft, considerate sigh on the other end.

"It's okay to be. I know the thought of dating for you has been... _weird_ , since you took in Vivian. But just be yourself, your oddly charming self."

" _Hey!"_ Lance laughed, and if she was next to him, he would've given her a playful, brotherly nudge. Veronica's laughed filled the air.

"I'm only playing with you. Just be yourself. Don't put too much pressure on the date and you'll have a good time."

That was one piece of advice he really needed to consider. He probably was hyping himself up too much, getting too excited. He did it in the past and he didn't want to do it again. He couldn't afford to wallow in self pity and heartbreak like he used to before when he got dumped or rejected, he had a daughter he needed to look after.

The buzz on the doorbell made Lance nearly jumped out of his skin.

"He's _here!"_ He hissed to the phone in a hushed voice.

"That's my cue to hang up and leave you to it. Have fun, don't forget to put on cologne; you're a nervous sweater."

" _Veronica!_ " Lance snapped, now flustered and running to his drawer, pulling out his signature brand and spraying himself sparingly.

"Text me afterwards to let me know that she wasn't some axe murderer or something."

"I'm not going to get _murdered!_ " He spat back as he moved towards his door to greet his date.

"Of course you won't, since according to your dating history you really know how to pick them."

"Ouch, I'm hanging up now."

"Good." And before Lance complain anymore, the other side of the phone wait dead. Now he was alone and had his hot date waiting.

He sped towards the door, almost tripping on one of Vivian's toys along the way. Hoping it hadn't taken too long, Lance swung the door open probably too abruptly by the way Keith's eyes widened in surprise.

"Lance, hey," Keith smiled, making his tummy tumble. "I was beginning to worry that I had gotten the wrong apartment number," He laughed smoothly, eyes glancing downwards for a moment. "Are, you ready to go?"

Lance's falter in answering was due to him being busy analysing Keith's outfit. Part of it was ogling about how nicely he was dressed in a tight fitted, button up shirt with the sleeves bunched up tastefully at his elbows, nice pants and shiny shoes; smart casual. God bless Veronica McClain.

"Totally!" Lance smiled, grabbing the keys to his apartment as he stepped into the hallway with Keith, locking the door behind him. After that they both turned to walk towards the elevator. "So do I finally get to know where we're going?" he asked as he pushed her elevator button downwards.

"I thought you liked surprises?" Keith smirked, arching and an amused brow.

"Touche," Lance murmured, smile quirking upwards. "Just thought I should know if I am going to end up all cut up in the back of your car."

Keith chuckled lowly, deep enough for it to vibrate in Lance's bones. "Maybe."

"How enigmatic of you. Is that in honour of your 'bad boy, tattoo artist' image?" Lance asked playfully as they reached the ground floor and stepped out the elevator.

"Of course it is, I have to keep the tattoo artists stereotype alive. Gets me more clients that way." Lance laughed at the joke, leaning into Keith's space as they walked, their shoulders nudging against each other.

"Of course it does," he agreed, laugh still tingling in his tone. Playful banter, flirty body language, yeah, Lance had this in the bag.

* * *

"No way!" Lance grinned as he turned his head to look at Keith. "Is this Shiro and Adam's bar?" Lance had heard about the couple's business called Abyss. He knew it was a rather popular place to go for exquisite cocktails and alcohol. It was fancy, fancier than the bars Lance usually went to. It wasn't typically the type of place to go before a night on the town, more of a special occasion place. Birthdays and whatnot. At least for the ordinary people like Lance. Maybe for people with heavier pockets.

"Yeah it is, I managed to be able to get us one of the private rooms. It can get loud in the main area, so we'll be able to talk more."

Private room? This was going to be some fancy shit.

"Have you been here before?" Keith asked as they approached the exuberant glass doors.

Was he kidding? Of course Lance hadn't been here before! All up until a few months ago, he was going to cheap dirty bars with all the other poor college students. If he wanted to go to a place like this and buy drinks he'd have to go halvies with Hunk.

"Uhh... no."

"Don't worry, it's not super pretentious or anything," he insisted as he opened the door. The music was instantly heating Lance's ears. Not because it was too loud, but it was good music with a sassy beat. The type you could have a casual conversation with also want to dance to.

Keith held the door open for him as he stepped in, which in itself was super cute of him, but ultimately was outshone by the inside. The lighting was dim, but coloured in a night time purple, giving it an undertone of elegance and mystery. It was the kind of place two characters would meet and give sultry looks to each other from across the bar in movies. Speaking of the bar, this one was made of marble and had lighting underneath so it glowed, showing its importance. It made sense, that's where the money making happened.

It had a very 'one drink is going to cost the same as my monthly rent' feel to it.

"Come on," Keith pulled Lance out of his panic, throwing him into another wave of panic of a different league as he put a hand on his waist to guide him in the right direction. "I just want to let Adam know that we're here," he explained as they walked towards the bar. It was only a Friday night, so Lance assumed it wasn't the busiest of nights for business. Still, there was quite a few people sat around and when they saw sight of Keith blossomed into familiar smiles and waves.

"Keith! Oh sweetheart is that you?" A man, maybe in his late thirties or early forties gaped, swivelling on the bar stool to get be able to see Keith better. "I haven't seen you around lately!"

"Hi Marlow. Turns out that drawing on people's skin takes a lot of time," Keith said with a light sprinkle or humour. Marlow laughed, hand on heart and head tilted back.

"Always about the work, just like your brother," the man chuckled and as he opened his eyes, he caught sight of Lance. "Oh now who do we have here Mr Keith? Surely not to date? This one's far too pretty for you and all your rough edges."

The surprised, yet flattered laugh that escaped Lance's mouth gave Keith enough time to speak before he could. "This is Lance, and believe it or not but we are on a date." The words sent a happy flutter through Lance's chest. It was a nice -no, _awesome-_ reminder. Yes, a date.

Lance turned to face Marlow and extended to hand out. "It's nice to meet you," he grinned and the man gave his hand out and shook it excitedly.

"What a rare sight! Haven't ever seen Keith bring a boy to this place. You must be a special one!" Marlow concluded, making Keith blush and pull at his collar, clearing his throat. Lance ducked his head a little to hide his grin at the sight of it. Hearing that he was one of the few people that Keith had invited here made Lance feel special, at least in the eyes of Keith.

"Thanks Marlow," Keith sighed out, cheeks still pink. "Now if you'll excuse us, we probably should start our date. Do you reckon you could let Adam know that we're here?"

"Of course, of course! Anything for you Keith and your pretty date! Have fun! Oh but not _too_ much fun!" Keith was already dragging Lance away as Marlow spoke.

"Nice to meet you!" Lance called over his shoulder, laughing as they got out of earshot. He smiled to Keith. "He was nice."

"He's one of the regulars," Keith explained as they walked into the direction of a glass door that said 'Private Functions Only'. "He's been coming here for as long as I can remember, even before I was working here. I'm pretty sure he's here half for the drinks, half to check out Shiro."

"I didn't know you worked here," he said, digging for any information he could. Lance still felt like he knew nothing about Keith.

"Long time ago." He opened the door and they walked inside. The private rooms were just as lovely as the main bar area. There were two large couches against the walls in the shape of an L. It was right next to a low table where drinks could be placed as people sat on the couch. Far too large of space for only two people, the couch alone could probably seat 10 people, and it only took up a small section of the room, there was still enough space for people to walk around a room and talk. It was quieter in there. As if it was sound proofed. However, there were speakers in the corner roof that could probably be connected wirelessly. Decor was tasteful and as elegant as it was in the main area.

It was really, _really_ nice.

"Adam and Shiro are loaded, huh?" Was the first thing to come out of Lancers mouth. As soon as it slipped out he flushed embarrassed, but relaxed as Keith laughed.

"Pretty much. They worked hard for this so you can't envy them. Come on, let's take a seat.

The couch was soft and comfortable and the lighting was somewhat dim, yet so much brighter than it was out in the main area, so Lance could still see Keith's face easily and clearly. On the table there was already two large cocktails that he could remember drinking the night where they all first met up. It was also the night Vivian had her accident and had to go to the emergency room. 

Maybe that was best to not thing about that right now.

Keith handed him the drink, insisting it was on the house. After that it was easy to flow in a conversation.

"So you said you worked here, was that before the tattoo artists gig?" Lance asked, stirring the liquid with a metal straw.

Keith nodded. "Yeah, it was handy having Shiro as my boss so I could ask for specific shifts. I was in college at the time so it was nice to be flexible."

"You say college as if It is a distant memory for you," he teased, sipping the drink. _Oh man this stuff was good._ "Is that because you're so old?"

Keith's laugh filled the space, warm low but still airy with amusement. "I'm what? 3 years older than you?"

"Old," Lance told him, smile playful.

Keith laughed. It really was a nice laugh. Lance was pretty good at making people laugh, but right now he'd never been more thankful for the gift. "What does that make Adam and Shiro then?" he asked leaning forward. _Yes Keith, get closer into my personal space, get as close as you want._

"They're literally a whole decade older than me, basically fossils. Like, rich, gay fossils."

He grinned shook his head, amused. "I like this, are you always this funny or are you already tipsy?"

"I'm almost offended that you think two sips of this extravagant cocktail is enough to get me tipsy. I'm just hilarious," he paused. His eyes went back to his drink, watching the ice in his cup float and clink against the glass. "I've been told I'm a bit much, not a lot of people appreciate it. I'm kind of loud." he said it like an apology, he's probably being too loud right now. Too much. He needed to tone it down before he scared this one away as well.

"I like it," he admitted, eyes going to his own drink shyly. After a short moment he looked back up to Lance. "You weren't like this when I first met you. It means you're getting more comfortable with me, right?"

Lance blinked, stunned. Dude was straight to the point. Blunt. Open and honest. Lance didn't mind it at all. In his opinion, it was way better than when people played coy the whole time. "Right," he answered.

"I'm glad. "

Before Vivian, Lance was not ever shy to avoid flirting with strangers. At least that's how he was with people he didn't know well or was serious about. He could put on the charisma like a switch and earn himself a hot date for the night. It wasn't all that genuine, some pick up lines being recycled endlessly. But when it came to somebody he actually saw potential with it was always genuine, _always_ super real. When with people he liked he acted more goofy than suave to his own horror. Now with Keith he felt more at ease, like he could be himself and not feel the weight of rejection that had only seem to grow with his newfound responsibilities. He hadn't been himself like this with someone in a long time. He hadn't felt this good in general in a long time actually. At least not since.... 

The ringing of Keith's phone pulled Lance out of that dangerous day dream and back into the present. Keith gave a quick look at it before getting to his feet.

"I think dinner has arrived." As he dashed to the door he gave one look back to Lance. "Wait here, I'll be right back!" Lance watched him go fondly, biting his lip as Keith closed the door.

He had been here for not even 10 minutes and he was already certain that this was going to be a really good date. This beat all those terrible college dates he's suffered through for the past few years.

While Keith was gone, Lance checked his phone, noticing a Snapchat from Nyma. He clicked on the notification and smiled as a video of Nyma and Rolo playing with Vivian appeared. It soothed over his worries, allowing himself sit back a little more comfortably and enjoy his time with Keith.

When his date arrived back into the room he was holding a large silver dish with a lid.

"Another surprise?" Lance queried, raising a teasing brow as Keith approached, placing the silver dish on the table in front of him.

"You see," Keith started, hand hovering over the lid of the dish. "Abyss is home to only the finest of beverages. However, Abyss only serves weird cheese platters where the cheese smells gross and I didn't think that'd be a cool date starter." Keith smiled as Lance laughed. "So I decided I'd get us some fancy food to suit the venue."

Lance was genuinely beginning to worry. How much freaking money was Keith spending on him tonight?

His worries washed away as Keith raised the lid of the dish, a cheesy, pepperoni pizza sitting underneath it. His grin brightened as he raised his eyes to Keith.

"How did you know pepperoni was my favourite?" He asked, leaning forward to take a sniff of the cheesy looking goodness.

Keith shrugged innocently. "I have my sources."

"Oh do you now?" Lance laughed, grin growing wider as Keith handed him a napkin. "Does this source stand at 5 foot tall, have a sassy yet brilliant mind and go by the name of Pidge?"

"My source sounds familiar, but mine goes by the name of Katie."

Lance hummed thoughtfully, chewing on a piece of pizza as he leaned back against the couch. "How the hell did that nickname even come about?"

"Some stories must never be told," Keith said, voice sounding distant in a mocking way. "In other words, I like my limbs attached to my body."

"Now not knowing is absolute torture! I want to know even more now."

He shrugged. "I would tell you myself but as I said, I like my limbs." Lance pouted. "And no amount of cute pouting is going to make me fess up." Lance pouted more, making effort to flutter his lashes. Keith chuckled despite sporting pink cheeks,. "No way, you know how scary she can be."

Lance sighed overdramatically in defeat, flinging himself backwards to lay on the couch and pondered.

"Okay then, how about this," he sat up abruptly, legs crossed. "Tell me stuff, how long have you known Pidge and Matt?"

"Well," he started, taking sip of his drink. "I first met them when I moved in to live with the Shirogane's. I would have been around 11 years old."

"Making Pidge 7, right?" Keith nodded. "I bet she was a child of terror."

"Actually, she was a pretty quiet kid. For the first three months that I moved in with the Shirogane's she kinda just... observed."

"Doesn't surprise me. That's what she does best."

Keith smirked around his glass. "Couldn't agree more. So how about you then? How did you meet Pidge?"

"Through Hunk, I've been best friends with the guy since I was a kid. They made nice with each other in one of their smart people classes. We all just started sort of hanging out and here we are. I've only really known her for two years. But we didn't really get along for the first 6 months or so."

Keith brow perked up in interest. "Really?"

"Yeah she thought I was some basic straight fuckboy who only knew how to party. I won't lie though, I _did_ party a lot, kind of went bat shit crazy for a while, but I guess I got it call out of my system before Vivian."

"You don't go out anymore? Clubbing?"

"I doubt security would let a guy in with a kid strapped to his chest," Lance teased, smiling proudly to himself as Keith rolled his eyes in amusement.

"I mean that would be quite the sight. The girls would probably love it." Lance hummed, grin growing as he leaned forward, closer to Keith.

"And you? What would you do?" He felt a little daring as his eyes darted up and down Keith slowly, encouraged as he watched the other man's Adam's apple bob. He couldn't help but smirk.

"Probably would call child protection services," he said solidly, face perfectly straight and serious until Lance cracked into a smile. He laughed some more as Lance gave his shoulder a playful shove.

"You're too old to be clubbing anyway."

"But not too old to date?" he asked with a smile. Lance bit his metal straw with a smirk and shook his head.

"You just made the cut by this," he held his index and thumb close together not quite touching, "-much."

"Lucky me," he mused making Lance both flush pink and smile.

By the way this date was going, Lance sure as hell felt more like the lucky one. But for now he left Keith believe it to the other way around.

* * *

Lance was far too giddy with himself.

Totally and utterly fucked.

Tonight had easily been the best first date Lance had ever been on.

Before he even knew it the date was over and Keith taking him back to his apartment where Nyma, Rolo and Vivian were waiting for him. Keith held his hand as Lance talked his ear off with whatever his jittery brain could supply for him. He had been more confident this time in talking to Keith. Yet that all seemed to go out the window now that Keith was holding his hand. It had him back to stumbling and stuttering all over a simple and innocent hand hold.

It wasn't his fault that Keith had really nice hands. Warm against the night there and rough in a ' I don't own moisturiser' kind of way. They might have even been a little smaller than his own, since Lance's fingers were much like the rest of him; long and wiry. It probably allowed Keith to be nimble when he did tattoos. 

"Is this you?" Keith asked coming to a halt. He stopped forcefully with Keith and looked up.

"Oh, umm yes this is me," he stumbled with his words, exceptionally embarrassed with the fact he almost missed his building because he was too enthralled with their current conversation.

"Okay cool." Keith made the effort to walk Lance directly up to the front door of the building. When they got reached it there was a turn of uncertain silence, both wondering what the next step would be.

Lance was the one who gathered the courage first. "Thanks for bringing me home." Keith squeezed his hand as acceptance, smile soft but still uncertain. "And thank you for bringing me out tonight, I seriously had a lot of fun. I don't get to do stuff like this much, but I had an awesome time with you. I was hoping..." Lance watched Keith's smile grow, "-that we could do this again sometime. That's if you want to, of course."

"I had fun too, I'd really like the hang out with you again." He smiled more as Lance audibly sighed in relief.

"Thank god. Because otherwise the next time I would have seen you I would have given you the _saddest_ puppy dog eyes and made you feel really guilty," he insisted, making Keith laugh and take a step in closer.

"Good thing I don't have to worry about that then," he murmured, making Lance realise how close they actually were standing. A nervous laugh escaped his mouth which Keith seemed to recognise. Lance really wanted Keith to kiss him, he was practically chanting in his head for him to do it. He could literally see the debate inside Keith's head going on by just looking at his face. Was he not sure if Lance would appreciate that or not? Maybe he thought Lance would get upset or annoyed? "Are you okay?" Lance nodded with a hum, trying to not crack into a grin as he noticed Keith's eyes dip to his lips for a second.

_Do it, do it, do it!_

Something in Keith's mind must've snapped and said _fuck it_ , because he wrapped an arm around Lance's waist. He gave him a second to adjust, to push him back if he wanted to. Lance didn't want to.

So with the indication clear, Keith moved in the close the gap between them. When they both get over the hurdle of hesitancy, Lance finds out Keith's kiss was just as sweet as his words, but still lingering with underlays like passion and desire. 

Lance's hands instinctively go to Keith's face, cupping his jawline gently, then slowly moved them to behind his neck. It's also there he realised how warm Keith is. His skin, his lips, even his presence is enticing and burning, like a flame you _probably_ shouldn't get to close to, despite the outcome being worth it. 

There's a little crackle of excitement that shoots along his skin that makes him want more even as Keith pulled back, knocking his forehead gently against Lance's.

"I've been wanting to do that for a while now, since I first met you," Keith admitted to him, eyes moving to his slowly after forcing them away from his lips.

"Even when I was passed out on your work space floor?" Lance teased, grabbing a hold of Keith's jacket playfully.

"I am going to say ' _no'_ for that one, only because it would make me sound like a creep." Lance laughed and pressed his lips against Keith's again for another sneaky kiss, making the other man smile against the warmth of his mouth. He pulled back quicker than what he'd like to, arms resting on Keith's, gripping his forearms.

"I really have to go or my babysitter will have my head, also gotta make sure my little one is alright." 

He nodded understandingly and took a step back. "I'll text you," he promised, making Lance's heart flutter.

"I'll be waiting for it," he said hoping it didn't sound too needy or clingy. But Keith just smiled and nodded, wishing him a goodnight and leaving Lance a blushing mess.

Best first date by far.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so fair warning for the next chapter but there is going to be a lil time skip ;)  
> I hope you enjoyed this update! Next chapter is very VERY cute with some Vivian and Keith interaction (warning; it's cuteness overload)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOU GUESSED IT IT'S FUCKING FLUFF TIME LETS GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
> 
> Also hi!!!! if you haven't already I updated my spider-man Klance series you should,, ya know,,, check it out,, maybe ;))

"I can't believe you have been dating Keith for two months. _Two!_ " Pidge exclaimed as she sat noisily in the passenger seat of Hunk's car on their way to Shiro and Adam's. "How either of you got this far I will never know. You're both ridiculously dumb when it comes to relationships."

Pidge was right about one thing, it had been two whole months since he and Keith started seeing one another. It had been great, with every time he saw him he felt a deeper connection grow. She however was wrong about one thing...

"I'm not dumb with relationships!" Lance huffed from the back seat with Shay, arm strategically holding onto Vivian's baby seat. "And neither is Keith! He brought me flowers before our last date," he shared the example with a dreamy expression. Pidge pretended to gag while Hunk and Shay awed at the sweet gesture.

"Honestly, I'm more surprised that you guys haven't made it official yet," said Hunk as he glanced at Lance in the rear view mirror.

One thing that was major difference between his growing relationship with Keith and Lance's previous relationships was that they were taking things slow. Snail pace slow. Like, middle-aged old people slow. Now that Lance was a parent he didn't have the time nor energy to just play around. He had other people to consider. People meaning Vivian. He couldn't uselessly involve somebody in his daughter's life if they were just going to leave later on. He had to be careful, he had to take things slow. His daughter had lost enough as is.

To be fair, it had been nice to just hang out and not have high expectations, to be able to get to know Keith as an individual before he knew his bed sheets. The people he dated in college tended to just want sex while his heart was set on finding love, leaving him always sore in the chest when it couldn't be properly reciprocated.

"We're just taking things slow," he explained, leaning down to the car floor to pick up Vivian's bunny blanket that she had stubbornly thrown to the ground.

"That's a first," Pidge grumbled.

"Ouch. Way to slut shame me," he droned out sarcastically. "Happy to know that I have your support."

"It's just weird for me alright? Why do you think it took me so long to introduce you guys? I thought you were either going to fall into gooey love or tear each other to shreds. Honestly assumed it would be the latter."

"Such faith," Lance sighed.

"I've said this to him and I say it to you, I just don't want either of you and been up getting hurt. I won't be taking sides if it comes to that."

"The faith is oh, oh so small,"

"Lance-"

"Pidge, I wouldn't expect you to take sides. I would never ask that of you. Just..." he trailed off as he thought it over. "Maybe just try to be happy for us? Do you understand what kind of freaking miracle it is that I'm even dating someone with my situation?" he asked, shifting his eyes to Vivian who had her blanket in her mouth.

Pidge sighed. "Okay, okay I get it. I'll be more optimistic."

Lance grinned, leaning forward to reach for Pidge's hair and ruffled it. "Thanks Pidgey," he chimed wickedly as the girl squirmed and wriggled, trying to get out of his attack.

"Isn't today also kind of a big deal?" Shay asked. "Vivian and Keith haven't really had any interaction so far, right?"

"It'll kind of be a test for him," Hunk added.

Lance bit his lip. It was true that his daughter and Keith had not had any chance to get used to on another. In fact, the last time Keith had seen Vivian was when he met her for the first time. That was well and truly over 2 months ago. She had grown so much since then, even celebrated her first birthday. On the one occasion that Lance brought Vivian on a date was to a cafe and she had slept the whole entire 2 hours, so there was no chance for bonding there.

If Lance and Keith were going to work out in the long run, Keith would need to get along with his daughter.

"Yeah, I guess it is," he murmured, suddenly feeling a little nauseous at the idea.

"Go easy on him," Pidge suggested. "He has no experience with kids. And his people skills are pretty shit anyway."

"I know he doesn't," Lance answered the first part, ignoring the second. "I'm not expecting him to swoop in and be her dad." The thought actually kind of made him feel worse. He wasn't used to sharing her in that way. "I just want him to hang out with her a little. Understand her more."

"Good, because there is no way he isn't sitting at Shiro and Adam's apartment right now freaking out."

Lance sighed and looked out the window. "It'll be fine," he said, hoping it truly would be.

* * *

"Stop freaking out," Adam sighed as he readied the snacks for their lunch get together with the whole group. He was making these little pizza scroll things, kneading dough and keeping his fiancé as far away from the cooking as possible.

"I'm not," Keith grumbled back stubbornly, crossing his arms and huffing as he leaned against the kitchen counter.

"You're doing the foot tapping thing," Shiro said, making him look to his foot which was indeed tapping up and down fretfully. He forced it to stop and began to tap his fingers against his bicep.

"No I'm not," he said just for the sake of being difficult.

"You are. Go annoy Romelle and Allura."

Keith squirmed. "They're getting their baby fever on."

Adam pulled a face with an eye roll. "You know the baby they're fevering over is your boyfriend's baby, right?"

Keith dropped his eyes to the kitchen floor. "He's not my boyfriend," _yet._ Adam gave him a look. "What if she hates me?"

"She's a baby, she can't really point to you and say 'hey dad, don't date this fucker'."

He glared at him as Shiro snickered. Keith gave him a look to show him his annoyance which made him stop laughing and walk over to him, placing a hand on his brother's shoulder.

"Keith, you'll be fine. You and Lance obviously like each other."

That was probably the scariest thing about it all. Keith _liked_ Lance, a lot. Them dating these passed two months had been amazing and he could feel himself growing more and more fond of Lance every time they saw one another. If today went horrendously... "If his kid doesn't like me it's a deal breaker, Shiro."

"Baby steps, baby bro," Shiro smiled warmly which melted away his first layer of anxiety. "Deep breaths and take everything in your stride." Keith took a deep breath. "Good. You should be more excited to see Lance, you haven't seen this week, have you?" Keith smiled involuntarily which made Shiro look smug and pat his back. "See, you'll be fine."

The doorbell rang and the sound of voices and shrilling from Allura made it obvious who had just arrived.

"Better go greet him," Keith said, subconsciously straightening his shirt, making both Adam and Shiro give each other knowing look behind his back as he walked out the kitchen to where the main room was.

Lance was handing off his daughter to Allura who cooed excitedly, bopping the tip of the little girl's nose making her giggle.

Lance's face was smoothed over with contentment as he watched his daughter, that soft look staying on his face as he lifted his eyes and noticed Keith walking in his direction. His eyes brightened and smile widened.

Keith took a breath for courage and walked over.

"Hey," Keith said before pressing a chaste kiss to Lance's cheek. The other man gleamed at the simple affection, blush painting his cheeks. "Hope that's alright," he murmured.

"Hmm?" he asked without words, still smiling.

"Is there PDA protocol with the baby?" He asked, eyes drifting to Vivian in Allura's arms on the opposite side of the room. Lance let out a surprised laugh.

"Vivian will be fine," he mused, hands clutching at Keith's arm.

Keith raised an expressive brow. "Vivian? I was talking about Pidge." The mockery ended with Lance laughing airily and Pidge slogging his arm with hidden strength.

"Urgh, I hate you both," she muttered and stormed off. They both laughed until Lance grabbed for Keith's hand, fingers intertwining. His blue eyes shone, making Keith's stomach flip.

"I missed you this week," Lance told him and if Keith thought there was butterflies before, he's now got moths slamming into his chest in search of light, and that light being Lance. Lance with his wavy brown hair, shy smile and warm hands.

"So did I. Sorry we couldn't hang out properly. I've been swamped." He had been doing a big project, a full back piece.

"That's fine. Vivi has been keeping me busy. I've been trying to get her to walk, I think she's shy about it."

"Is that like... bad?"

Lance smiled and let out a huff of laughter. "Nah, she's just a late bloomer. Rachel and I were the same."

"Oh." Keith felt a pang of guilt. He knew the anniversary would be coming up soon. Lance squeezed his hand and smiled nonetheless.

"Come on, let's go say hi to the others," he said before guiding him out and towards Hunk and Romelle on the couch talking about something exciting, if their faces were anything to go by.

* * *

Keith spent his time talking to Hunk while Lance was over with Allura chatting about baby things. He hadn't gotten much of a chance to get to know Hunk, but he already knew he liked the guy. He had a warm, gentle nature but was easy going and could keep a conversation flowing, even if it was about nothing.

This time, sadly it wasn't just 'nothing'.

"Have you dated anyone with kids before?" he asked after a conversation about a TV show they both liked. He must have noticed the way Keith tensed up. Hunk was Lance's best friend, and the guy probably could kill Keith if he deemed necessary. "Hey man, I'm not going to attack you or anything," he laughed, making Keith relax slightly. "I'm just curious."

"No... I haven't."

"And that's totally fine!" He insisted with a comforting smile. "Have you held her yet?" Hunk asked curiously, eyes drifting to Vivian who was playing with a blanket with a rabbit head on it. Keith shook his head. "You should, it won't be nearly as scary as you think it is."

He squirmed in his seat. "What if she cries?"

"If it makes you feel better, she's cried plenty of times while Lance holds her, and he is her favourite person. He won't think any less of you if she does."

"That actually is oddly comforting," Keith chuckled. Hunk smiled brightly.

"Good! I'm glad you guys are getting along. He's been more himself lately. You've probably noticed the change from this Lance to the one from when we all first gathered together."

Keith had noticed it. Lance was bubbly and brighter than he had been when they first met.

"I'm glad too," Keith smiled, catching onto Lance's eyes from across the room who gave him a closed mouth smile, eyes having a little twinkle in them. Soon after, he was on his feet and scooping his daughter up into his arms and walking over to both Hunk and Keith.

"What's the hot topic over here, huh?" He smiled, readjusting Vivian in his arms as she clung to him like a koala, little face pressed into his shoulder.

"Just warning Keith here that if he hurts you I'm going to murder him," Hunk joked, but the words made Lance stiffen, looking appalled.

 _"Hunk!"_ Lance hissed, looking from Hunk to Keith until they both broke into laughter.

"He was only joking Lance," Keith insisted, smiling gently until Lance's body language softened.

"Good, otherwise I was going to have to murder _him_ ," Lance said giving Hunk and pointed look. "Anyway, I came over here because Shiro is going to show me the wedding plans. Apparently, they have got a really nice venue. Hunk, do you reckon you could hold her for me while I look?"

Keith's big mouth opened before his brain could catch up. "I could." Lance's eyes flickered to him from Hunk, the surprise evident. "I mean, only if you a comfortable with that..." he watched as Lance's face slowly melted out of 'shocked surprise' to 'pleasant surprise'.

"Of course you can!" He said breathlessly with a smile.

He felt warm rush self pride at that expression he caused on Lance's face, that was until he realised what he had gotten himself into.

Lance maneuvered Vivian from his hip and moved her until she was on Keith's lap. Lance grabbed and guided one of Keith's hands to hold onto his daughter's back, most likely to keep her from falling backwards and onto the ground. Keith allowed Lance to mould him into a perfect hold, trying to commit every single detail to memory.

Lance brushed some of Vivian's dark locks back then leaned next to her ear. "This is Keith, remember? Be nice to him and don't pull his mullet."

Keith huffed out a laugh. "It's not a mullet."

Lance hummed on the idea with a cheeky smile, obviously not quite agreeing.

"Lance," Shiro called out to him, "-you ready to see what we have plans so far?" Lance's face twisted excitedly.

"Coming!" He chimed, giving Keith a soft smile before skipping over to the door to follow Shiro, most likely to dining room table where all he plans were scattered.

Keith smiled warmly as he watched him walk away, then running cold with sudden realisation that he was now fully in the care of his daughter.

He glanced down to his lap to where the one year old was sitting quietly. The more Keith looked at her the more he found it hard to believe that she wasn't his biological daughter. She looked at him expectantly with those Lance-blue eyes. 

"What am I supposed to do now?" Keith whispered, turning to Hunk who was still with him.

"Well, she looks pretty chilled out with you right now. I'll go grab her B.B to keep her that way." Keith raised a confused brow. "B.B: bunny blanket. It's her go to comfort toy."

"Okay," Keith said hesitantly, realising Hunk was going to have to leave him to cross the room to get it, thus leaving him alone.

Daringly, he looked down at Vivian who was staring at him with big eyes. She didn't look to be feeling any deep emotions, wasn't crying, wasn't angry at her father for leaving her alone with an incapable stranger, but she didn't look happy to be there either.

A click made Keith raise his head, seeing the way Allura directed the camera of her phone in his direction.

"It's a monumental moment! You'll thank me later!" She insisted with a grin, now showing Romelle the photo. Keith sighed, watching Hunk rummage through Lance's bag for the blanket.

He looked down to Vivian feeling a wave of unease as she continued to stare at him. He was not the best at eye contact in general, he used to refuse to do it as a teen, but having a baby just _stare_ at him was bringing him back to being judged in the school hallways.

"You are my make or break, you know?" Keith murmured to her quietly. "You hold my future in those tiny little hands of yours," he said, finger poking at her scrunched up fist. "I hope we like each other, because I _really_ like your dad. So please don't cry."

"You know, whatever you're talking about with her, she's not going to reply or really understand what you're saying," Pidge teased from across the room. Keith glared at her, just decided to save his breath and looked back down to Vivian who was squirming a bit.

This time her passive face was gone, and instead her little face was twisted. Keith raised a brow at her, wondering what had caused such an expression. He watched her face scrunch up, like she had just tried a lemon, pouting and eyebrows furrowed.

"I don't know man, I couldn't that blanket anywhere. Lance must of put it somewhere, and I-" Hunk stopped, sitting beside Keith with an amused laugh. "Oh wow, that's a funny face she's pulling."

"Did I do something?" he asked nervously. Was that her 'I don't like you' face? Did she already hate him? Maybe he wasn't holding her properly or was uncomfortable on his lap?

Hunk laughed. "No it's not that! She's mimicking your facial expressions."

"My..." he softened his face and looked back to Vivian who was watching him -no, _observing-_ him intensely. Her face was no longer bunched up. His brows shot up in disbelief, which prompted Vivian to attempt to do the same, but ended in her eyes going wide instead. Keith huffed out a breath of laughter at the sight, making the baby smile excitedly. Her smile was gleeful and showing off her little teeth, most yet to grow. Keith smiled, which sent the little girl into a spiral of giggles, bouncing up his knees.

"Aww, she got you to smile! You're totally melting, aren't you? You so are!"

Hunk was right, he _was_ melting _._

If high school Keith could see now Keith, he would've straight out barfed.

"Looks like you're not the only one," Hunk murmured as Vivian grabbed onto Keith's jacket and started to shake it, making a happy gargle sound. Keith looked up to see Lance watching them from the kitchen entrance where he had to go with Shiro a few minutes ago. He was smiling and began to blush at being caught.

After snapping out of whatever daydream he was in, he quickly began walking over, holding onto a blanket with a rabbit's head at the end.

"I realised I had B.B in my pocket, I thought she might need it," Lance started, handing his daughter her blanket which ended up going into her mouth to chew on. "But looks like you have it all under control." Lance's smile made warmth sizzle in his chest. He was so enamored by this man, it's almost embarrassing. "I'll be back soon, Shiro's just showing me the flowers they're organising," he said, then made his way back to Shiro, a slight skip in his step.

"Good job Keith," Hunk whispered, giving him a good natured punch to the shoulder.

Keith grin grew, glancing back down to Vivian who was smiling with her mouth around her favourite blanket, blue eyes gleaming.

_A great start, thanks Vivian._

* * *

"I swear to god Veronica, if I had ovaries, they would've exploded," Lance insisted as he pulled the nappy tabs together, his wriggling one year making a fussed sound. He looked up to Veronica who had her face scrunched up, brow raised in speculation. "What?"

"All he did was hold her," Veronica reminded him.

"You don't understand how _cute_ it was though!" Lance said, squirming with smiles just at the thought of it. "She was _giggling_ and he was just so-" Lance scrunched his hands into fists, unable to express it into words.

"Wow," Veronica droned. "You are actually really liking this guy."

"I know!" Lance sighed dreamily and he put Vivian in a onesie. "It's just, I don't know? It feels good. Feels _right._ "

Veronica couldn't conceal the concerned expression on her face, which twinged Lance with many emotions.

"Just don't get ahead of yourself Lance, I don't want you getting hurt."

Lance sighed as he clipped together the last button on his daughter's pajamas. After that she was quick to wriggle out of his grasp and sit by her toys, rubbing her tired eyes. "I know, I know. I haven't known him for long, but he's a _good_ guy and he seems to be really into me. And I know I'm into him. I guess I'm just taking a chance on this, I know it could be risky. But for now it feels worth it." The explanation had his older sister nodding slowly.

"Okay... okay," she said in resignation. "You're an adult now, I don't have any say in this, so I'll support you in this and not be so paranoid. I'll take your word it, Keith is a good guy."

"Thank you." And he really was thankful.

"So when are you going to tell mama and papa about him?" She asked, gently flattening Vivian's dark curls.

Lance cringed at the thought but was cut off when the devil himself's name popped up on his phone as it vibrated. Veronica smiled knowingly as Lance lunged for it, answering the call before the vibrations could even think of stopping.

"Keith, hey!" Lance practically shouted into his phone, grimacing at his own volume.

"Hi Lance," Keith's voice on the other end sounded thankful that he picked up. "How are you? You're not busy or anything, are you?"

Lance glanced up towards Veronica who now had Vivian on her knee.

"No nothing, just hanging out with Vivi and my sister."

"I can call back later if you want?"

"No, no it's totally fine!" Lance insisted fretfully. He always liked to get calls from Keith. Most of the time they just texted, so it was nice to hear his voice. "What's up?"

"It's going to be a nice day tomorrow and I was thinking maybe we could all have a picnic at the park near your place? There's play equipment and a duck pond there, right? You can bring Vivian and we can hang out for the day, that is if you are free."

Lance thanked every deity that he had gotten a call from his manager earlier that today saying that he could have the weekend off. "I'm free and that sounds amazing." He had really wanted to do something nice for Vivian this weekend and this allowed it so that they both were going to have a great time. Plus the more time Keith got to spend her Vivian meant they could really figure out if they had an actual realistic future together.

"Awesome!" Keith's voice sounded enthused, which made Lance's heart pound giddily. "Also, I wanted to ask would it be okay if I bring Kosmo? I'd feel bad if I went to his favourite place and left him home alone," he added on the sheepish chuckle at the end.

"Umm..." he trailed off as he thought about it. Kosmo was a gentle dog; a gentle giant. But that was the thing. A giant. Lance had no idea what his dog would be like with a baby, and honestly he had no idea what Vivian would think or do either. She might pull at his tail and become dog food. "What is he like with kids?" he asked instead.

"Pretty good. He's hanged out with Adam's nieces before without any issues. They're a little bit older though, one's like seven and the other's four, but he was good with them. I guess it's a bit different since Vivian is a baby huh? Uh..." Keith thought about it. "I could get a muzzle if you're worried. I don't _have_ one but I _could_ get one."

"You don't need to do that," Lance insisted. A lot of trust went into relationships, and of course he needed to trust Keith as much as Keith needed a trust Lance. "If you don't think your dog's going to bite my kids head off then I believe you."

A dry chuckle on the other end made Lance go to red and thankful at this wasn't an in-person conversation. "Are you sure? I don't think Kosmo would, but I get it, you gotta take precautions."

It was in that instant that he was glad that he didn't get offended over the fussing and worrying. He had known people to get irritated over assumptions like that over their pets. Heck, he even remembered once a dog approaching him and Rachel when they were five and their Papa went mad at the owners when their dog snapped at them. It hadn't ended well with the owners trying to call the police on the 'mad Mexican man'.

"I trust your word," he told him, a bubble of laughter leaving his mouth afterwards. "I'll see you tomorrow then!" He felt himself grinning enough to split his face.

"Can't wait," Keith said smoothly and Lance could just _imagine_ the smirk on his lips. It made him weak at the knees just thinking about it. Lance ended the call, still smiling to himself, not even stopping when the teasing started.

"You literally look like a teenage girl being asked on her first date," Veronica snickered, leaning to his daughter's ear. "Your _papi_ is silly." Vivian smiled that big grin of hers; she knows silly is a funny word, he feels.

"No I'm not!" Lance gaped in mock offense, grinning as his daughter goes into a spill of giggles. He moved over, swooping her from his sister's arms and blew a raspberry on her tummy. The shrill of high pitch laughter made his heart soar with joy and pride. "I'm never going to get you to sleep tonight," he chuckled, rubbing their noses together. "You were so sleepy before and now you're a bundle of energy." His smile grew while she continued to reciprocate the expression.

"It's your own fault for riling her up," Veronica reminded him with a smile.

"Oh hush," he murmured before looking back to Vivian. "We're going to see Keith tomorrow! Are you excited?" He asked and she giggled again, arms flailing around. "I'm going to take that as a yes."

Veronica rolled her eyes with a smile.

* * *

Keith situated themselves near a tree, so that there was plenty of sunshine as well as shade. He even brought a picnic blanket and food, you know? Like nice dips and fancy crackers. He didn't know if babies could eat crackers so he also brought fresh fruit from the shops that cost way more than they should have. It's then when it hits him of how much he liked Lance. Keith wasn't really usually the sort of guy that puts a lot of effort into these sort of things. Usually because he doesn't have many people that he wanted to impress. Like, _really_ impress. Hell, he even has his dog on a leash! Kosmo's really obedient so he hasn't really ever found it need to use one since he was a puppy.

Again, he just really wanted to impress a certain blue eyed man. Deep down he also knows he wanted to make sure his daughter liked him as well. 

He had texted Lance telling him where he had set up so now all there was to do was wait. He nervously rubbed behind Kosmo's big fluffy ear until he noticed it perked at the sound of someone approaching.

Lance was dressed a casual denim jeans, his usual backpack that was no doubt filled with everything necessary for a daily outing with Vivian and a baby blue t-shirt that brought out the sparkle in his eyes. Keith couldn't help but hope that sparkle had to do with his excitement for today. The sparkle of excitement in his eyes to match the butterflies Keith felt in his chest.

He looked at his daughter in his arms. Keith couldn't help try to commit the positioning of Lance's hands to memory for later if he had to hold her. Vivian was wearing a tiny little hat on her head, covering her dark curls and was dressed in a sweet pink pinafore (Keith knew the exact name for the type of dress is purely because of Romelle) with a white long sleeve undershirt.

"Hello there," Lance chimed.

"Hi," Keith couldn't help but grin, especially when Lance whispered something to Vivian and her hand raised to wave 'hello'. Keith waved back which made the little girl squirm excitedly.

Lance smiled as he noticed the picnic basket and blanket. His eyes lit up. "Wow, you've outdone yourself! It looks amazing!" He said, as he took a seat on the blanket with Vivian on his lap. 

"Thanks, it's nothing special. Just crackers and dips. I didn't really know what Vivian could or couldn't eat so I brought some fruit as well. I hope that's okay?" He admitted, scratching the back of his neck.

"That's perfect," Lance smiled and turned. "You hear that Vivi? Keith brought you some fruit! Are you going to say ' _ta Keith_ '?'" he asked, voice going up an octave. She didn't reply with the words supplied, but she smiled as her dad spoke which made Keith chuckle and Lance click his tongue. "I'll take that as a no then."

Keith felt the tug of the leash in his hand.

"Oh!" Vivian said sounding surprised, eyes widening as Kosmo walked around Keith to greet the new arrivals. It wasn't until then that he realised why Lance was apprehensive about introducing his daughter to Kosmo. Keith hadn't realised how big he was compared to the baby. Vivian almost flopped backwards with how far she had to crane her head backwards to look up at him.

He'd also never heard her say something that sounded like an actual word. It was cute.

"Kosmo down," Keith commanded, using his hand to hand to touch the ground. Kosmo instantly obeyed and laid down, sniffing curiously at Vivian's leg, tail wagging slowly.

Lance let go of a relieved breath then smiled. "Hi Kosmo," he cooed, extending his hand to pat his head. "Look _mija,_ it's a doggy! A woof, woof!" That explanation was the cutest thing ever. A _'woof woof'_? Adorable. 

Vivian copied her dad and extended her hand out towards Kosmo. She couldn't quite reach, but Kosmo was eager and wriggled closer to her and licked her hand.

Obviously surprised by being licked, Vivian looked like she was going to cry and Keith cringed. She made a face of confusion and a noise that didn't sound very happy but when her dad laughed she must've realised it was fine and moved closer to Kosmo, giggling.

"Gentle Kos," Keith reminded him and that is exactly what he was with the 1 year old. His tail thumped against the grass as Lance directed Vivian's hand to pat his fur in smooth strokes. Vivian made a wonder struck sound.

"Looks like they like each other," Lance grinned, moving his free hand towards Keith's that was planted on the picnic blanket. The tips of their fingers touched and it was enough for Keith's heart to somersault. "Good thing too, or this date would've been awkward," he laughed out and the acrobat in his chest went from somersaults to cartwheels and back flips. 

"Lucky us," Keith smiled. He looked back to the picnic basket. "Now I haven't tried most of these dips before, Adam said they were good so if they suck we can blame him," Keith said as he pulled out the four different types. " _Or_ we have a loaf of slightly stale bread that was originally for the ducks."

"Da-" Vivian said, grin on her face.

"Uh-huh, ducks," Lance smiled, fixing her hat. "She's going to love you for that, she loves feeding them."

"Good to know I'll be in the good books. Also I can't believe you could understand that."

"Most people can't, but when it's your child and you live with them you kinda get a grasp on what they're trying to say."

"I haven't heard her speak so much before," Keith noted, glancing to Vivian who was chattering away to Kosmo, words meaning as much to him as they did to Kosmo. 

"She's limited. Most of it isn't 'real' words, more like half words or sounds. She knows me as _papa,_ but that's only recent. Before I was just 'pa'." He chuckled fondly, pride on his face.

"And how about walking?" Keith asked. Not being able to spend every living moment with each other meant there was a lot of texting, snapchats and sometimes phone calls. He often mentioned that Vivian was close to walking.

Lance sighed. "She's so close. The amount of times she has stood up by herself and I've raced for my phone only for her to sit back down on her butt is astronomical. But you know, each child is different and she'll walk when she's ready. I just hope I catch it on camera."

"Patience yields focus." Lance gave him a confused look which made Keith shrug. "I don't know it was something that she would always tell me and high school when I would get mad and punch walls."

"Let me guess," he started with a smile that didn't seem to be leaving his face anytime soon. "You were totally that edgy kid who would always get into fights. But it would be against bullies and stuff. Am I right?"

"Creepily so."

Lance smiled proudly, hand gripping the back of Vivian's pinafore as she tried to crawl off the picnic blanket and make a grand escape. "What kind of person do you think I was in high school?"

Keith thought about it for a moment. "Well, you already told me you were on the swim and baseball team, so I assume that you hung out with jocks, making you cool with the popular kids. But you also said you liked theatre, so you were also friendly with the drama and geekier kids. In other words, everyone probably loved you."

Lance looked impressed but also bashful. "Well I wouldn't say _everyone_."

Keith was going to say a joke about modesty when a sharp annoyed whine came from Vivian who was still trying to make her getaway from the picnic blanket.

"Vivian, no" Lance's voice was stern as he pulled his daughter onto his lap so she couldn't crawl away. He looked back up to Keith and sighed, free hand rummaging through his backpack and pulled out one of those squeezie yoghurts. "Sorry she's being impatient. Could you open this for me?" He asked, handing him yoghurt. "Thank you," he said as Keith handed it back to him, then to Vivian. The annoyed whines turned to the happy suckling of food. "Sorry, when she sees the swings she gets excited."

"That's no need to apologise," he told him. "How about we eat now so by the time she finishes we can go to the swings or pond?" he suggested as he pulled out the food he brought along with him.

"Good idea, I'm hungry. Let's hope Adam hasn't screwed us over with shitty dip."

* * *

Whether Keith was aware of it or not, he was actually pretty good with kids. Or at least _his_ daughter. Of course Lance saw the hesitance on Keith's face as Vivian raised her arms to Keith, wanting him to be the one to pick her up after he told her they were going to go feed the ducks. Once he was told the correct way to hold her he was fine. Although he did give Lance a look of ' _what do I do?_ ' when Vivian babbled to him and looked at him expectantly, like she was ready for them to go into a full blown conversation. 

Keith handed Vivian a piece of bread, telling her to throw it in the pond. She threw it and it landed at Keith's feet, nowhere near the water where the ducks were swimming. Obviously he was overestimating her throwing ability, but was quick to pick it up again - wiped off the dirt and grass - then help her throw it so it reached the water. A giggle of glee left her lips as a duck swam up and ate it.

Lance was _loving_ watching the spectacle. Seeing them bond gave Lance a flutter of warm hope. _Maybe they could work out._

But Lance realised pretty quickly he wasn't the only one looking. He noticed a small group of mothers with children openly watching. They giggled behind their hands, only looking away every few moments to make sure their own kids who were playing in the park hadn't run off or been kidnapped. They were a little older than them, old enough to look at Lance's baby face and call him cute or adorable or ask if he was babysitting his baby sister (it had happened before). 

Keith, however, was different. He didn't have that "boyish" look to him. He looked mature, a little older. He looked like a _man_ when Lance could still be considered a _boy_ by appearance _._ He wasn't that much older than Lance at all, but tattoos and his 'bad boy' style helped. 

At least that's what he told himself.

Lance walked back over to his handsome date and his giggling daughter, joining them to throw bread for the ducks.

It was quite fun to point out to those mothers that they certainly weren't Keith's type.

Lance: 1  
Thirsty Park Mothers: 0

"Bringing the bread was definitely a success," Lance said to Keith who had Vivian on his knee. She was now no longer interested in the ducks but more the bread itself, staring at it in wonder. She went to put it in her mouth. "Maybe a little too much. Hey, Vivian." She raised her eyes at the sound of her name. "Yucky get that out of your mouth. No eat." She looked a little confused so Lance stuck his tongue out and made a great day out ' _blah_ ' sound, shaking his head.

Keith held out his palm to her.

"Ta?" Keith asked in a gentle voice and honestly probably always one of the cutest things he had ever witnessed in goddamn life.

The abbreviation made Vivian's growing mind click and hand over the stale piece of bread.

"Thank you Vivian," Keith smiled then threw the piece into the lake for a duck.

Lance couldn't help but think that Keith would make a great dad.

The next place that they visited was the swing set since there were her favourite. Keith strapped her in the little seat and gave slight pushes, like he was terrified of her going to high and flying out. Kosmo stayed by his feet like an obedient guard dog, despite the fact he looked minutely concerned as to why it was pushing the baby in the air. 

"How did you manage to get such a sweetheart? Lance asked.

"Kosmo?" Lance nodded. "I had a client one day and said that her dog had given birth to four puppies. She showed me a photo and I couldn't resist saying no when she asked me if I wanted one. That was five years ago."

"He's good with her," he added on, looking to Vivian. Lance had initially been worried that Kosmo wouldn't like her or accidentally hurt her due to his massive size. But so far he had been wrong. "So are you actually, Mr _'kids don't like me'_."

He chuckled at that, pushing the back of Vivian swing again. "She's the chillest child I have ever met. It's hard to be bad with the kid who only knows how to smile."

Lance couldn't help but think of the irony of that statement. The first three weeks that Vivian was in his care all she did was cry. She wouldn't eat, she wouldn't sleep, just scream and cry. He didn't have the mother's touch it, that instinct of what to do with a crying newborn. The first month they lived together they both didn't eat, or sleep. All they did was cry for the same person they had just lost. A mother and a sister.

"Lance?" Keith said softly, eyes concerned. "You spaced out," he explained, brows furrowing together. "Are you alright?"

He blinked himself out of that miserable memory and smiled. "Yeah I'm fine, sorry. Were you saying something?"

"Well..." Keith trailed off, eyes going down sheepishly. "I was just thinking about how nice this was. I like hanging out with you guys." _You guys._ Lance smiled. "I'd really like to spend more time with you. Both of you. But I get it if you didn't want me to spend too much time with her. I mean..." he looked down to Vivian on the swing. "I'm not your boyfriend or whatever, and at the moment to her I'm just some random guy. But I'd like to be more. I like you, I like you a lot Lance."

His heart rate quickened as Keith turned to face him.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is... Lance, do you want to be my boyfriend?"

* * *

As soon as those words left his mouth he realised he had made a big mistake.

Lance's eyes dropped the same way his jaw did. "Umm..." He rubbed his shoulder and the body language was as clear as the sky; uncomfortable.

"Of course you can say no if you don't want to!" he insisted with nervous volume. "I just thought... I don't know? We've been dating for two months and I really like you, but obviously I'm moving too fast for you or you just don't want a relationship or-"

"Keith," Lance cut him off. "I really like you too."

"I feel like there's a but coming." he said, Lance now smiling sadly.

"I'd love to be your boyfriend. But," _here we go, "-_ it's just like you said. You've never seen Vivian without a smile. You haven't had to witness a tantrum or when she's fussy. You haven't missed sleep because she's screaming in the middle of the night and won't go back to sleep. The vomit, changing diapers?" He nervously played with his hands, pulling at each finger. "You've seen the good side of it all. But what if you see the bad side and just..." Lance hesitated, looking a little choked up which made Keith's heart drop. "If you decide you can't handle it and leave. I can't do that to her."

A part of Keith broke at seeing expression on his face. He wanted to desperately make it go away by making promises and using sweet words, but he knew that wasn't fair or practical. He needed to make Lance believe him with his actions.

"I don't know how I'm supposed to prove that to you," he said admitted, feeling his body tense up as he noticed Lance's eyes go glassy. "I want us to work, I really do. I don't think I've ever wanted anything more in my life." That was one thing he could say with 100% certainty.

Lance exhaled with shakiness. "I want us to work too. I like you a lot Keith. I just need... a little reassurance that you could handle what it's really like, you know? It's one thing spending a day with a kid, but living it?" Lance shook his head. "If only we could like trial it or something..." Something lit up on Lance's face. "I think I actually have an idea."

Keith gave him a look too indicate that he wanted him to continue.

"What if you spend the weekend over at my place? I could show you how to look after her. It would be like a little test run. If you well and truly hate it then we can just say friends, no harm done. If you like it then..." Lance shrugged, sweet smile go on his face. "Then maybe we could talk about putting a label on us. Making it official."

The thought of it made Keith's stomach flutter.

"I think it's a good idea. Great even." That made Lance smile more. Moving closer he placed a kiss on the cheek, warming Keith's entire face.

"You hear that Vivi?" Lance cooed, now lifting his daughter out of the swing. "Keith's going to come over for a sleepover! Does that sound fun?" Her eyes widened with wonder as a smile grew, a small bubble of laughter spilling out. Lance grinned back, clutching Vivian to his chest and looked to Keith. "That was definitely a yes."

Keith could already feel his heart melt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keith is SOFT pass it on
> 
> next chapter is the start of their little trial!!
> 
> again, another reminder that I updated my spider-klance series (it's called Hide) and if you haven't read the first part it's called What's Up Danger :)


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's sleeeepover timmeeeeee ~~~
> 
> I hope y'all had a good valentines day I was single but who needs a valentine when your dad runs down to the shops in the middle of the night in his pj's to get my mum flowers and me and my sister chocolate??
> 
> also hi? 3k hits?? tysm like W O W 💕💕💕

"Wow," Shiro said once Keith had explained the situation.

"I know."

"Spending the weekend? That's a pretty big deal," he added on.

"I know."

"So what you're saying is, this weekend is a trial to see if you could handle being in a relationship with a single father?" Adam asked, eyes drawn in a way that meant he was curious in disbelief or completely stupefied.

"Pretty much."

"Does that mean you're going to be sleeping with each other? As in in the same bed?"

Keith stalled, he hadn't even thought along those lines. He'd been so focused on making sure he didn't completely fuck this up that he hadn't even thought about those little details such as sleeping arrangements.

"I... I don't know. I mean, we haven't... you know?" They barely had time to see each other as is, let alone be intimate with one another. Even their kissing hadn't developed anything passed pg-13 rated. Would that kind of thing even be on the cards? Would Lance want that? Keith knew it was something he would like, but was it something he wanted now? Or later? When they were more concrete in their relationship?

Maybe he should make sure that he actually got to continue his relationship with Lance before he started getting ahead of himself.

"Just try get through the weekend," Shiro suggested, voicing Keith's thoughts.

"Yeah..." Now that was another thing for him to worry about.

"Be optimistic. If it doesn't work out then maybe it just wasn't meant to be."

Keith groaned, hands going over his face as Shiro spoke. "But I _want_ it to work. I've never wanted a relationship to work so much before. At least not like this."

"Then all you can do is try your best and make sure you stay open minded to everything. This isn't just Lance's decision whether he wants you in their life, it's your decision to make sure you want them to be in your life too."

That was true. Lance was probably just as nervous as he was. It was slightly comforting thought to the anxious tremble in his gut.

He may not be as nervous, but Lance was probably feeling something similar to what he was feeling right this second.

* * *

"I have to cancel this weekend," Lance rambled to his phone as he rocked his wailing daughter. "Of all the weeks for her to start teething again," he grumbled as Vivian grabbed onto his hair and yanked it, maybe trying to give him as much discomfort as she was feeling herself.

Teething had never been a fun time. Vivian especially just couldn't handle the discomfort and seemed to get a lot of pain, running a fever, drool _everywhere_ and don't get Lance started on the lack of sleep.

In all honesty it was an absolute shit show.

"Keith is going to run for the hills," Lance said to himself and then to the other person on the other end of the phone call who happened to be Veronica. "He's going to dump me without even being my boyfriend!"

"Is it really that bad?" Veronica asked, not sounding like she wanted to really know the truth.

"I think I slept for an hour last night," Lance admitted as he walked around the apartment, hoping the movement would calm his screaming child down. "Ronnie this is really bad. How is someone who has never had to deal with something like this supposed to handle it?"

Lance knew this was supposed to be a test of sorts, but it didn't mean he wanted Keith to actually hate his life this weekend. He wanted Keith to stay more than anything. To keep wanting him, to want _them_.

"I can hear it, Jesus, kid knows how to holla."

"She's got Rachel's lungs, that's for sure," he murmured now sitting on the couch, hand rubbing his daughter's back as she whined and cried.

It was awful. Really goddamn awful to be absolutely helpless and to not be able to provide any real comfort.

"What are you going to do?" Veronica asked after a few moments of no speaking from either one of them.

"I don't know," he admitted, closing his eyes with a groan. His growing headache had been constant for the day because of Vivian's screaming. "He's already got the weekend off work."

"Yikes."

"It would be really shitty of me to cancel on him now. What if he thinks I'm having second thoughts?"

"Just..." she paused as if taking the time to think of the right words of wisdom to say. "Maybe you should call Keith? Explain it to him."

Lance sighed. "Yeah, I really should." He hoped Keith wouldn't be too mad if he had to cancel their weekend together. But it just wouldn't be fair to drag Keith into this hellhole with him. The worst part was that they had been so excited to spend time with him. "I should go then, calm this one down and let him know what's up."

"Good idea, let me know how it goes, okay? If worse comes to worse I can see if I can find some time to come over and help out if you need."

God bless Veronica McClain.

"Thanks Ron."

"Anytime. Call me later okay? If she doesn't calm down soon you might want to call Mama or Luis and Lisa. They might be able to help."

"I will, thank you."

"Don't thank me, make sure my niece isn't crying anymore and call the guy you like."

"Okay _mama_ ," he grinned, hanging up the phone before Veronica could even defend herself.

Now next to do was calm down his kid.

It felt like forever of rubbing her back and singing hushed lullabies until loud sobs turned into soft sniffles. Still sad sniffles, but sniffles were better than screaming.

When he was certain that she had fallen asleep he decided that it was time to break the news to Keith.

With one hand still cuddling his daughter he sent the other man a text.

**Lance:**   
**Hey Keith i know this is super shitty of me to do but i might have to cancel this weekend**

It didn't take long before a reply came.

**Keith:**   
**Oh..**   
**Why?**   
  


**Lance:**   
**Vivi is teething**   
  


**Keith:**   
**Is that bad?**

Lance chuckled fondly.

**Lance:**   
**For her overall health? No**   
**For my sanity? Most definitely**

The next message Keith sent surprised him.

**Keith:**   
**Can I call you?**

Lance cringed at the thought of his phone ringing.

**Lance:**   
**I'll call you, viv is sleeping**

**Keith: okay**

His hands trembled and stammered as Lance clicked call on Keith's ID. Of course, the other picked up immediately.

"Hey, Lance. Is Vivian alright?"

The concern in his tone made his heart melt. "Yeah, she's teething and doesn't take too well to it. I haven't gotten much sleep the past couple of nights."

"Oh." Lance couldn't help but notice how upset he sounded.

"It's just a little stressful at the moment here. She's not sleeping, won't stop crying and I feel like that's a lot to take in at the moment. I don't want to throw you into the deep end, is all."

A long pause made Lance wonder if he fucked up. "Lance..." Yep, definitely fucked up. "Wasn't that the whole point of this weekend? Just throw me into the deep end and see if I'm capable of being a part of your life and lifestyle?"

Now it was Lance's time to have a long run of silence because he couldn't quite believe what Keith had said.

"I-"

"If you really don't want me to come over, I'll respect that. Honestly though, it sounds like you could really use the help."

Another moment of stunned silence.

"I..." Keith didn't interrupt his moment of shock to think. "You know you probably won't get much sleep, right?"

"I wasn't expecting that much sleep anyway." He could almost hear the panic over the phone. "I-I mean because of crying and stuff!"

"I slept an hour last night," he said as a blunt warning.

"That's okay. Not that you not sleeping is okay, because it's not, but I know what I'm getting myself into. Kinda?"

"Oh," he said, obviously sounded dumbfounded.

"So now that we've gotten passed that, is it still okay to come over on this weekend?"

Lance couldn't help but smile. "I've actually been excited to being able to spend a weekend with you. But I have to ask again. Are you sure?"

"I've been looking forward to it too," Keith said with a soft laugh. "And yes, I am definitely sure."

Lance's cheeks heated up and his heart began to beat faster than before, so much faster that he's pretty sure it is what stirred Vivian awake. She made a soft noise and curled up in his arms.

"Okay, thanks Keith."

"There's nothing to thank me for. I just like spending time with you."

How could his heart not flutter at hearing that?

"I like spending time with you too," he grinned, not able to hold the giddiness from his own voice. "Okay then, I'll see you on Friday after work, right?"

"Yeah that's right. Want me to bring dinner?"

"That sounds amazing." Not having to cook for himself was always a win.

"Cool. I'll see you in two days."

"Two days," Lance smiled. "Hey Keith?"

"Hmm?"

"Thanks."

There was a long pause and then a small huff of laughter.

"Again, nothing to thank me for."

Lance wondered if Keith knew how much this meant to him?

Probably not.

* * *

Two days later and Lance was a wreck.

Vivian's teething situation hadn't gotten any better. In fact, it had gotten worse. She hadn't stopped crying and still had a slight fever running. A new edition to her case was a rash on her stomach that apparently was devastatingly itchy. Poor little thing had scratched herself raw, so Luis - the goddamn genius - suggested that she should wear mittens so she wouldn't dig her nails into the tender skin.

It would have been a perfect idea if it had it caused Vivian to explode into a tantrum over not wanting to wear them.

Lance was also in the process of cleaning his apartment. Keith's arrival was far too soon for him to do everything that he needed to do. He could have extra week and still not get anywhere near clean enough.

Speaking of Keith's arrival, Lance did not look cute. Unless you found black circles under the eyes from sleep deprivation and messy hair appealing.

Lance was a wreck.

But he would be lying if he said he wasn't excited. 

As stated, Keith would be here any moment to spend the weekend. Lance _liked_ Keith. It was thrilling to be able to spend quality time with him, almost like spending time outside of the school playground with your childhood crush. This weekend Keith could spend time with Vivian as well. If everything went smoothly, Keith may very well just be his boyfriend by the end of the weekend.

That was the goal anyway.

Best case scenario.

Worst-case scenario was that Keith politely request for Lance to never speak to him again.

Lance was going to try to be optimistic.

"Optimistic," Lance repeated to himself as he stared down at Vivian who was on the ground screaming her tiny lungs out.

The doorbell rang and Lance was quick to move to the door. He smiled the whole way, eager to ask Keith how his day went as well as eat the dinner he had brought. It sounded so domestic, something dearly missed from Lance's life. Instead of seeing Keith when he opened the door he saw one of his neighbours standing there.

Lance had not spoken to Jonathan much since the guy moved in a couple of months ago. Maybe it was because they lacked things in common. He was the type of man who always wore suits and carried around a briefcase. His mama wouldn't condone it, but if Lance was going to assume something of him, he would assume that he was snotty nosed kind of guy valued his money more and saying a friendly hello to his neighbours in the morning. He had ignored Lance on more than one occasion. Considering he was probably twice Lance's age he would have thought simple politeness was a given. Isn't that what that generation always goes on about?

"Oh, hey man what up?" Lance asked as he stepped out of his apartment and closed the door to shield the noise of Vivian crying so they could properly hear one another.

Jonathan pursed his lips and cleared his throat.

"I just wanted to warn you that I will be putting a noise complaint in with the landlords over the incessant noise coming from your apartment."

Lance blinked, paused to see if Jonathan had suddenly become a comedian and then blinked again.

"What?"

"Look, kid," Jonathan started with a stern tone. "If you can't control your child and stop the crying then nobody else will be able to have any peace in their own homes. Just because you are young doesn't mean you can be lazy and not do your job which involves looking after your child and keeping them happy so they don't scream at all hours of the day and night."

Lance stood there, stunned into silence over what Jonathan was implying.

"I work long hours of the day and night, I pay taxes and am a good citizen who at least deserves to be able to come home and relax without hearing a screaming in child every 30 seconds."

"She's teething," Lance breathed out, shaken in disbelief. "I'm really sorry about the noise but I can't do anything about it."

Jonathan huffed. "That's ridiculous."

"She's uncomfortable and in pain. Of course she's going to cry. There's nothing I can physically do to make her stop."

"Give her a pacifier."

"She spits out," Lance growled. Who the hell did this guy think he was, coming here just to tell him he wasn't taking care of his daughter well enough? It made Lance so angry, made hot angry tears spring in his eyes.

He'd been doing his best. Had barely slept over the past couple of days and done everything in his power to make sure that his daughter was happy. He didn't need this guy who didn't even have kids of his own to tell him what he was doing wrong. These past couple of weeks had been hard enough as is with Rachel's anniversary, he did not _need_ this shit right now. 

"If you can't look after your own child and provide it with comfort and care then maybe you should consider other options. Like moving back into home so that your parents can assist you."

_You've got to be fucking-_

"She's teething man, she isn't going to be crying like this forever, it's only going to be for a short time."

"Then maybe you should look into a way to shut it up in the middle of the night when everyone is trying to sleep."

It.

_It._

He called his daughter an _it._

"What do you expect me to do? Shove a pillow over her head and smoother her until she goes quiet?" Lance snapped, feeling that anger bubble and roar. Jonathan rolled his eyes like Lance was the baby instead.

"That's an immature statement."

"You know what's immature? Putting in a noise complaint on a _fucking_ baby!"

"If you keep acting aggressively towards me and I will also add that to the complaint-"

"Is everything all right here?" A voice made both Lance and Jonathan twist their heads in the direction of who had just spoken. A wave of relief rushed through him as he spotted Keith standing there with a bag slung over his shoulder and in his other hand a steaming plastic bag with the symbol of the local Chinese place on it.

Optimism's arrived.

*** * ***

The day had gone by in the snail like pace. As soon as he finished with his last client he was ready and out the door, Allura wishing him farewell with a knowing smile. She knew what was going on this weekend because she was the one looking after Kosmo while he was gone. He hadn't escaped the teasing all week because of how excited and anxious he was. 

Keith hadn't seen Lance since their date to the park with Vivian and that had almost been two weeks ago now, so anyone could understand his excitement. But of course he was nervous, especially with the knowing that Vivian wasn't going to be a happy camper because of her teething. The way Keith saw it, he assumed if he could handle this weekend and still want to make his relationship with Lance work, then he could handle almost anything Vivian threw his way afterwards.

Lance's apartment was on the outskirts of the city while the tattoo parlour was dead in the middle. That meant it took some time to travel so it made buying a little bit of a struggle since he didn't want it to be cold by the time he got to Lance's place. But then he had remembered that Lance made a passing comment about the local Chinese place across street from his apartment complex and decided that was a safe option to buy food.

Upon entering the building Keith was more impressed and he thought he would be. It seemed like a nice place, nicer than the places Keith stayed at when he was Lance's age. If it were him, he'd be in a gross sweaty dorm with a gross, sweaty guy who always stole his socks. Keith hadn't been inside since he picked Lance up on their first date. The night light dampened the elegance of the building.

He took the elevator up to the 4th floor and checked the numbers in search for number 15. When he walked out of the elevator Keith noticed Lance immediately at his door, talking to who he assumed was one of his neighbours. The conversation that they were having didn't seem to be a pleasant one. Lance's fists were scrunched up by his sides and his face contorted in a pissed off expression.

"Is everything all right here?" He asked, mostly looking at Lance, noticing how aggravated he looked. He had never seen that kind of expression on the man's face before.

"Are you here to make a noise complaint as well? A man with early stages of greying hair asked.

Keith frowned. "No? I'm Lance's..." He trailed off, a little unsure of how to answer that question. "Friend." he decided on since it was the safest option. "Is there a problem here?"

The man faltered for a split second as he looked over Keith's appearances. As soon as he realised that Keith was on Lance's side with whatever argument was going on he was quick to change his attitude.

"Oh... Mr. McClain and myself we're having discussion about the noise coming from his apartment," the man stammered, dropping eye contact.

"Noise?" Keith asked looking to Lance who had his arms now crossed.

"Vivian," Lance supplied sharply.

Keith brows scrunched up and before he spoke. "She's a baby though? Babies make noises. Cry and stuff."

"Well... yes... but-"

"Jonathan, if you really want to put in a noise complaint to the landlord go ahead. But just know that she has kids and she's going to be far more understanding of my situation than you are. Now if you will excuse me, I have a guest." Lance said, giving the man a pointed look. Jonathan stood up straight and glared at Lance for a few solid moments.

"Very well," he murmured before picking up his briefcase and briskly moved back to another door of the next apartment across. Lance's neighbour.

"What was that all about? A noise complaint?" Keith asked prompting Lance to give a heavy sigh.

"It doesn't matter, he was just being a jerk about all the crying Vivian has been doing. It doesn't matter," he repeated. "Let's just get inside and eat." It wasn't until then that Keith realised how tired Lance looked. From everything to voice being dull and body language lazy. He really looked exhausted.

What the hell was Keith walking into?

"I'm sorry it's... uh, kind of a mess," Lance admitted stiffly as he opened the door. Keith instantly heard Vivian sniffling and whining as they walked inside. He looked in her direction and spotted her on the rug by the couch and TV, cheeks ruddy and tears tracking down her face miserably. Her arms extended out in their direction, most likely for Lance. 

When there were no moves made Keith glanced to Lance. A vacant expression covered his face and Keith watched in horror as a tear slipped from his eye and down his cheek.

"Lance?" Keith asked softly, mildly horrified that Lance was now just suddenly crying. Lance turned to him, seemingly dragging him from his own head space. Quickly, he wiped his face.

"Shit, sorry I-"

"Are you okay?" Keith asked and watched as a few more tears welled in his eyes.

"Sorry, that guy was just a jerk and-" he sniffed, rubbing his nose. "I haven't slept much this week so I guess I'm a little sensitive."

"Hey," Keith said, putting a hand on Lance's arm, rubbing up his arm in attempt to comfort him. "It's okay. Why don't you go try calm Vivian down and I'll go get some plates for us so we can eat?"

Lance nodded with a sniffled, wiped his eyes then looked up to Keith with a smile.

"I'm glad you're here." Keith's chest warmed up, a smile growing on his face.

"Me too."

* * *

After dinner, it was officially the start of Vivian's bed time routine. It started with checking her nappy - which was clean, thank god - then getting her into the bath. It was sweet to watch Lance wash a sleepy Vivian, talking Keith through the procedure. 

When he dried off her skin and hair he put on her pajamas. Keith was impressed with how seamlessly he managed to do it despite her wriggling. 

Speaking of Lance, he was also feeling a little better. Obviously exhausted, but not quite so sensitive or crying. If Keith could, or had the time, he would talk to Lance about whatever his neighbour had said to him to upset him so much, but for now the guy obviously just needed a good night's sleep.

Speaking of sleep, it was now time to get Vivian to bed. 

They walked out together, leaving the bathroom and moving down the hallway to her room. The nursery was a cute room, with soft colours and plush toys. There was a mobile above the crib in the shape of a spinning solar system.

She sat on the ground by her crib, quietly holding her rabbit blanket. BB... right? She seemed relatively calm, definitely tired from the day. Keith had hoped it would mean she would easily go off to sleep, but that instantly shot down when Lance pressed a kiss to her forehead and said the dreaded words, "Ready for bed?"

Big eyes were instantly glassy with tears, her head shaking desperately.

"But it's bedtime, Vivian. You have to go to sleep," Lance spoke gently.

Vivian shook her head more, making a noise that was definitely her own version of 'no'. 

"Come on Vivi," Lance spoke, making a move to lift her but stopped when she started to sob. Keith watched Lance's mouth twitch, eyes never leaving his daughter as he took a long moment to figure out what he should do. "What's wrong?"

"Papa," she whined, hands lifting for him as big tears dribbled down her red cheeks. "Papa, papa, papa." She choked a little on her cries, going into a small cough as she clutched tightly to her father. 

"Hey, hey, you're okay," Lance assured her as he picked her up. He pressed a kiss to her temple and swayed. "I got you. You're okay." The reassurance was like opening a dam. She was crying harder now, voice shrilling and uncomfortable. Face bright red with tears and snot all getting wiped on Lance's clothes.

Keith had no idea what he should do, so he hovered by the door. 

"Papa--" she made a distressed sound, grabbed onto the sleeve of his hoodie.

Carefully Lance detached her hand from his clothes. "You're okay sweetheart. You still don't feel good, huh?" He flattened her hair down, attempting to soothe her as he spoke. "It's okay. You're okay. You just need some sleep."

She obviously didn't like the idea of that, grabbing him again by the fabric of his hoodie before stuffing her face into his shoulder.

"Yeah, I know," he said, nuzzling his nose into her hair with a sigh. He then began to sway in a slow, soothing way, a soft hum almost deafened by the wailing. 

Keith couldn't help but feel weirdly useless as he just stood there. But as Lance began to move around the room, rocking her gently to the tune of his sweet humming, he gave Keith a small smile. It instantly made him feel a little better about not being of any help. 

Lance walked around the room in almost a waltz style. It seemed practiced, the slow, careful and somehow graceful movements. The weird thing was that it was _working._ Keith wasn't sure if it were the movement, the soft humming, the head touches or the constant reassurance, but her screeching was quieting down into sad sniffles. 

Lance stopped in front of her crib, flicking a switch on the mobile. The distraction of colours and movement quietened her down as she clung to Lance, thumb going into her mouth. Keith could hear Lance murmuring words to her that he was guessing was in Spanish, pointing at the glowing Saturn as it passed their eyes.

The distraction worked so well that she barely noticed that Lance had lowered her into her crib as her eyes got droopy.

"Goodnight Vivian, sweet dreams," he said before spinning on his heels to face Keith at the door. He did a small victory dance which made Keith have to cover his mouth to stop himself from laughing. Grinning, Lance walked out of the room and Keith followed.

"Sorry about that," he whispered as he carefully closed the door. "She gets a bit of separation anxiety when it comes to bed time. Especially since she's not feeling so well." 

"You honestly killed it. You made it look easy."

There was a light blush that settled on his cheekbones. "It just takes practice. But thank you." His eyes dropped to the ground as he frowned. "It's probably my fault she doesn't like being away from me. I helicoptered the shit out of her after Rachel. Too scared to leave her alone."

"I feel like that is normal. Understandable; definitely."

"Yeah..." he agreed, almost reluctantly. "Hunk said the same thing. I'm lucky though, once she's out, she's out."

"Does she usually wake up in the middle night?" Keith asked, genuinely curious. He had no idea when babies stopped or started things. Of course he had no idea how is babies sleeping pattern worked.

"She's old enough to be able to sleep through the night, but this week has been a bit of touch and go. She's been waking up a couple of times and has struggled getting to sleep. But I think the poor little thing has just been so exhausted from crying all day." He began to speak louder with each step away from Vivian's bedroom as they made their way out to the main living area.

That directed them to the couch where they sat down in front of the TV.

"Movie?" Lance asked and he couldn't say no to a little bit of downtime. Bedtime routines were stressful and a big ordeal. No wonder Lance was as exhausted as he was.

"Sounds, good." Lance's face brightened as he began to ramble on about the movie options as he got up his Netflix account. It wasn't long before they had decided on a movie and began to settle down to enjoy it.

It was also the time when Keith started to freak out again like he was a teenager on a first date. Should he put his arm around Lance's shoulders? Should he just refrain from touching him all together? They were so close on the couch but weren't touching each other. Was that a sign he wanted personal space? He didn't want to make the other uncomfortable, but he always had reacted positively to physical interactions before like holding hands. Maybe Keith could just do that? They had already held hands plenty of times so maybe that was his safest bet for the time being. He could easily just put his hand in the space next to them and hope that he got the hint or-

Keith tensed up as Lance's head suddenly tilted, now resting on his shoulder, arms brushing and warm up against his side. Keith felt his body relax, trying to hide that stupid smile on his face as he leaned his head against Lance's.

This... this was good.

Who would've thought a simple head on Keith's shoulder would have his heart pounding and feeling so giddy? He wondered if Lance could hear it. If he could, he didn't mention it as they sat there in comfortable silence, enjoying the movie as much as they could with the unspoken thrill of being so close to one another.

It wasn't until Keith realised Lance had gone a little too quiet and he looked over that he saw that Lance was asleep on his shoulder. A fond smile made it's way onto his face as he looked at the sleeping man so close to his face.

Being this close had so many advantages. He could notice how dark his lashes were and the faintest of freckles that looked like they had faded away over the years splashed across the bridge of his nose and on his cheeks.

His breathing was soft and even, indicating deep sleep. Not that Keith could blame him, he had obviously not had enough sleep over the past week. There was no way in hell he was going to deny Lance of that simple luxury of uninterrupted sleep.

Even when the credits of the movie were rolling he couldn't bring himself to wake. Keith carefully maneuvered Lance into his arms so he could carry him to his bed. He was so out of it that he didn't even looked like he was on the verge of waking up as Keith walked. It reminded him of the first day he met Lance when he passed out, leading to Keith carrying him to the staff room couch.

He had been instantly attracted to Lance that day, thinking he was cute. Liking how he stared in awe at his art and stammered over sentences. If only Keith knew then that soon enough he would be completely smitten with the guy who blacked out at seeing tattoo gun, something that he worked with every day.

Things work out in funny ways sometimes.

Keith was lucky that Lance was already in comfortable clothing to go to bed, making it easier as he lifted the sheets and covered him in the warm blankets. When Keith pulled back to walk to the couch to sleep Lance's eyes began to flutter, a soft tired grumble leaving his mouth.

"Keith?" His voice sounded groggy as he sat up on his elbows.

"Hey Lance," Keith whispered. "The movie finished and you fell asleep. Didn't want to wake you up."

"Oh," he murmured sounding half asleep. A little pout was present on his face as he rubbed his eyes. He looked absolutely adorable. "Where are you going?"

"The couch." They hadn't talked about sleeping arrangements before he answered fallen asleep so of course Keith wasn't going to just jump into the guys bed without permission. That would be just creepy.

Lance made a grumbling sound, lifting the blankets beside him, then patted the space there. "Sleep here, the couch is hella janky."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. Get in before I call you a prude."

As if Keith could deny that.

With a chuckle, he moved for the space Lance indicated to, wriggling under the covers and smiling as Lance rolled over to face him.

"Hi," Lance smiled and Keith replicated it.

"Hi."

An amused noise left Lance's mouth. Keith felt the breath tingle against his lips.

"We should go to sleep. It probably won't be long before Vivian wakes up and starts screaming the apartment down." Keith laughed at the description and grinned at Lance who hesitantly moved in a little closer to him, knees knocking innocently against one another.

"Okay then, goodnight Lance."

"Goodnight Keith."

Keith couldn't stop his heart thumping in his chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next update is going to be part 2 of the sleepover and you know what that means??? PREPARE FOR MORE CUTENESSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> I hope you all liked this weeks update and I can't wait to see you all next time 💕


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE READ
> 
> ok my friends we have a SLIGHT issue. If you've read my notes before you might remember that I have CTS (carpal tunnel syndrome) and it's super fucked to the point where I have to have surgery for it (yay me)  
> I don't know when the surgery will be, it could be in a week, or in a couple of months, but it's gonna put me out for a couple weeks when i DO get it which means I won't be able to update this lovely fic of mine for a while.  
> So i've decided that until i have my surgery I'll update every weekend to make up for it! We're offically halfway through this fic with six more chapters left (including this one) so please stick around! 
> 
> If you want to know when I'll have my surgery you can follow me on insta (i'll update stuff on there and I'm on there pretty frequently) 
> 
> ALSO!!!! THAT REMINDS ME!!!! WOW I'M A DUMBASS 
> 
> on my instagram i started a mini series where Lance is a stripper but the series as a whole is pretty wholesome (just thought I'd put it out there)
> 
> anyway I've talked enough shit for now so i shall let you go to enjoy this chapter 💕

There were only three occasions that they were woken up last night by Vivian. One was for a nappy change and Keith was still half asleep, too tired to give a shit about the... well... shit. The others were because she was just not loving being alone. It did give Keith a good indication of what to do in the middle of the night. Nappy check and quick reassurance. 

But now that it was morning, Vivian was awake and ready for the day, unaware of the fact Lance and Keith would've probably appreciated a few more minutes sleep.

Apparently hungry babies wait for no one. 

"You like scrambled eggs? I'm pretty good at making them. If you don't want that we have cereal and stuff." Lance asked as he put Vivian in her high chair.

"Scrambled eggs would be perfect." Keith would be quite willing to eat anything Lance put in front of him.

Lance grinned, and Keith wondered if the extra hour of sleep during the movie was enough to give Lance a brighter smile and colour in his cheeks.

"Awesome, _now..._ " he quickly made his way to the fridge, pulling out a tub of yoghurt. "How would you feel about feeding Vivi?"

The question took Keith off guard, but not unpleasantly. Just... surprised. 

"Umm... sure. I don't really know how to do it though," he admitted which made Lance giggle. A _real_ giggle. 

"Don't worry. It's easy. She does the hard stuff. It's yoghurt, so she won't choke or anything, unless you shove too much in her mouth."

"Are you making fun of me?" Keith asked.Lance hummed, smile on his face as he put Vivian's bib on. 

"Never," Lance smirked, then handed Keith a small spoon and bowl. "Here you go, now if she starts being fussy just make her smile or something and she'll open her mouth. Take each opportunity as it comes."

"Okay, but if she starts crying I'm tapping out," Keith said, sitting on a chair in front of Vivian's. "Hungry?" he asked the little girl who just grinned at him. It was like an entirely different child from the day before. He wondered if she would stay that way.

Feeding went by uneventfully, she didn't fuss and was pretty happy to eat. As Keith fed her, he could smell the cooking of scrambled eggs and bacon and listened as Lance chatted away to him and Vivian.

It was more peaceful that he thought it would be.

He kinda liked it.

He liked having someone to talk to, he liked seeing Vivian's smile after every mouthful of food and the way her eyes lit up whenever she heard Lance's voice.

Hell, he might _really_ like it.

"Breakfast is ready," Lance announced, putting a plate in front of him with eggs, bacon and toast. Keith shouldn't say he'd impressed, but he is, he knew it was a simple dish, but _still._ He never put effort into his breakfast, so this was a treat. "Oh, I didn't ask! Did you want a drink? Coffee? Tea? Juice?"

"I'm fine, thank you Lance. This looks amazing, seriously." Lance beamed at the compliment, leaning down to press a simple kiss to Keith's cheek.

"It's the least I could do since yesterday wasn't the best start to our weekend," he laughed sheepishly. "I mean, first you had to watch me have an argument with my neighbour, then watch me _cry_ over said argument, then I fell asleep on you while we were watching a movie, then my grumpy tired ass forced you to sleep in my bed."

"First of all, you didn't _force_ me to sleep in your bed. I liked sleeping with you. It was... nice," they both went pink at the confession, smiling a little giddily at the reminder. "And your neighbour thing wasn't your fault. What did he even say to you?" Lance groaned, rolling his eyes as he put a few spoonfuls of scrambled egg on another plate for Vivian, letting her use her fingers and munch by herself since she had finished her yoghurt.

"He was just being such a jerk. Bringing up my age and my parenting. He insinuated I was being _lazy_ with looking after her because I'm young, which was why she was always crying. Even suggested that I go back and live with my parents so they can _help me._ "

"Wow, talk about a dickhead," Keith muttered back, finding himself actually irritated with the man. _How rude could you get?_

"I _know_ right!" Lance laughed back, shaking his head, as if he were still in disbelief. "I'm so glad you arrived when you did, I was either just going to break down crying or punch him in the face."

Keith chuckled, knocking their feet together underneath the table. He watched Lance smile shyly, locking their ankles together.

"That _really_ would've been an interesting start to the weekend," he said to cover the fact he was a little flustered by the causal touching. It felt so _coupley._

"Reckon I would've won?" Lance asked with a cheeky glint in his eyes.

"Hmmm... I don't know. He _did_ have a briefcase. Could've used it as a weapon."

"True. I could use you as my weapon. Even out the playing field. He backed off pretty quick when he realised you were with me," Lance said before taking a bite of his eggs stacked on a piece of toast.

"I'm pretty scary."

Lance's laugh was almost addictive. He'd make any amount of stupid jokes that weren't even funny to hear it.

"Yep. Terrifying." There was a higher pitched giggle that caught both of their attentions. "See, she thinks so too. Look at that terrified face." Keith looked at the girl covered in scrambled eggs, most of it looking like it had gone on the floor or all over the tray, rather than her mouth. Despite it, she had a big grin on her face, handful of egg in her hand.

Keith couldn't help but laugh.

Maybe he could handle this life after all.

* * *

Keith was washing the dishes when he saw it. Connected to the fridge by a magnet was a picture of a woman in a hospital gown, holding a teeny tiny baby in her arms. Lance was also in the photo, with a big grin on his face and an arm around the girl's shoulder.

Keith must have zoned out on the photo because he hadn't even noticed Lance standing in the kitchen after putting Vivian by her toys. 

"That was the day she was born," Lance said, a soft smile on his face. He walked closer to the fridge and pointed to the girl, the smile turning sad. "That's Rachel."

"You look so alike," Keith couldn't help but say. Lance nodded, a little laugh at the end.

"Yeah, people thought we were identical growing up. Especially when my mama gave us both ugly ass bowl cuts." He chuckled at the memory for a moment, before the smile slipped off his face. "She died of heart arrhythmia. Just dropped dead after putting Vivian down for a nap. Sudden cardiac death, they called it. Some undected heart defect caused it." Keith watched Lance stare blankly at the photo. "It was really sudden, you know? Didn't get to say goodbye."

Keith knew what that felt like. What he would've done to get to say goodbye to his father.

"It gets easier," Keith promised. "I know it sounds shit, but it really does. When you learn to live for them, for the both of you." He looked to his side, back at Lance. "I didn't know her, but she'd be proud of how well you're doing with her."

"Thank you," Lance said, grabbing onto Keith's hand. "It's... it was a year ago last week." Keith's head spun in to face Lance so fast he almost cracked his neck. Last week? He had no idea. "We all went to her grave. Vivian didn't get it, obviously." He took a big breath. "I'm not sure if it's going to get easier or harder for her when she _does_ get it. I don't want her to feel like she's missing out."

Keith hated to think that Lance thought he wasn't enough for her.

But he hated it even more thinking he was probably right. Keith spent his whole childhood feeling like he was missing out on his parents. 

"She'll wonder, maybe," Keith said slowly. "But she won't miss out on love. She'll know she always has people there to love her."

Lance smiled at his feet. It's a gentle curve of the lips. Sad, but comforted. "Rachel would've liked you."

Keith smiled. "Really?"

"Yeah, she probably would've flirted with you. She liked that 'bad boy' look." They both laughed lightly at that and Lance squeezed his hand. 

They stood there, looking at the photo a moment longer before someone decided to make their presence known again. 

"Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa..." Vivian repeated until Lance turned around, grin growing on his face as they spotted Vivian on the rug, two blocks in her hand, hitting them together.

"Hello, sweetheart! You want papa and Keith to come play?" Vivian began clapping. Lance laughed as he tugged his hand and dragged him over to the pile of toys, ready to play.

* * *

After play time it was evident that Vivian's teething discomfort was back. She sniffled sadly against Lance's chest, little face pressed into his shoulder, like she was hiding from the world.

Lance kissed her forehead, rubbing her back in slow, comforting motions, smiling to Keith as he walked back, holding a bottled milk in his hands.

" _Mija,"_ Lance whispered, prompting her to look up. She looked up slowly, rubbing her face as she peered to the side to where Keith sat on the couch. Her eyes lit up and her hands were quick to move towards the bottle.

Keith chuckled gently as she did, handing her the bottle.

After her bottle of milk she seemed to calm down. Lance couldn't help but notice the way she stared at Keith. More so, his arms.

_Same, Vivian, same._

Her hand extended forward, touching his shoulder and making Keith spring in surprise. She cooed and patted a rather large tattoo of a lion.

"Ka-ka," she said, then grinned up to Keith. Lance snickered behind his free hand as he saw Keith's brow raise. He looked to Lance hoping for elaboration. 

"She's saying cat," Lance laughed.

"Cat?" Keith said, looking dubious. Vivian's eyes lit up, fingers touching the tattoo excitedly. "I mean... close enough," he murmured, little smile growing on his lips.

"So, why a lion?" Lance asked, leaning in for a closer look himself. It was so detailed. Truly a work of art. "Any reason behind it?

Keith shrugged. "Not really, it was one of my first tattoos. I just thought it looked cool."

Lance hummed, doing the same as Vivian and looking over at each tattoo connected to one another, going down his arm and down to the tips of his fingers. They had been dating for two months, but this was one of the first times he just got to sit and stare, taking in every design and drawing on his skin instead of sneaking glances whenever he thought Keith wasn't watching. There had never really been a time where he could appreciate each and every design on his skin. Hell, he had held Keith's hands numerous times, but he had never noticed the rainbow dots lining up on the inside of his left middle finger.

"This was the first tattoo I did on myself," Keith said, probably noticing Lance staring. 

"On yourself?" Lance said in awe, grabbing Keith's hand and pulling it closer to his eyes so he could get a better look. "Wow."

"It's literally just six coloured dots," Keith mused.

"Remember, I am the guy who passed out just looking at a needle. Anything you do to me is impressive." Keith laughed at Lance's words, only stopping when Vivian began patting at Keith's biceps with a curious noise leaving her mouth. She wriggled off Lance's lap, sitting in the space between them. "You like them, huh Vivi?" Lance asked, noticing how her eyes were especially drawn to a certain tattoo of a snake wrapped around a knife.

"Look," he said, fingertip touching Keith's skin, traveling over the line art of the snake. Vivian squealed in delight, bouncing up and down and moving to do the same. Laughing, Lance raised his head to see Keith giving him a fond smile. 

At realising what he was just doing, Lance retracted his hands from Keith's arm, face heating up.

"Oh god! I'm so sorry!" He blurted out. What was _wrong_ with him? Going all about touching Keith without asking? Who did that? 

Keith chuckled. "It's alright, I don't mind." At that they both went pink in the cheeks, while undeterred, Vivian continued on and touched the tattoos until a soft yawn left her tiny mouth, rubbing her eyes.

Lance blinked in dismay and looked to the watch on his wrist. "Nap time!" He announced, scooping Vivian into his arms. "Be right back," he whispered down to Keith and was quick to scamper out of the room.

He walked into the nursery and frowned at his daughter. "I know he's cute, but remember he's going to be _my_ future boyfriend, not yours," he said, still frowning at Vivian tried to show her whole hand in her mouth, giggling. 

A quick five minutes later he was back out, walking to the spot where he had been sat before. There was an uncertain silence between them as he did. Crap. Maybe all that touching really did weird him out?

"Uh... I'm sorry about that," Lance said sheepishly again.

"You apologise a lot, did you know that?" Keith smiled good naturedly. Lance did know that. Rachel had always pointed it out to him.

 _'Stop apologising all the time Lance,'_ she would grumble. ' _You always act like your very existence is a hindrance to everyone. Don't apologise for existing. For being yourself.'_ At that time, Lance had felt the need to apologise for everything he did. He was a loud, at times obnoxious person who had a pleasing complex. He liked being liked. Sometimes apologising for himself was the only way to assure that people _kept_ liking him.

"I... I've been told," he murmured.

Keith cracked into another smile. "Well no need. Honestly I'm surprised you haven't seen more of my tattoos anyway," he said, twisting his arms and looking at them. He paused and looked to Lance, cringing at himself. "That sounded bad, I meant... well..." He shook his head and restarted. "Wanna see more of them?"

Lance's sadness melted away with a grin; always the open book.

They started off with his left hand, extending it to him to take. "I was bored one day and started drawing on my hand with a sharpie." Lance's fingers traced over the delicate and geometric lines. They were detailed, precise, pretty. Thin and delicate, lines tapering off just before they reached his knuckles. "Ended up kinda liking it. Did a proper design and got it done. Allura did it for me in the ink though."

Lance fingers moved upwards to his forearm. 

"A wolf?" Lance asked at the small geometric wolf.

"A joke from my teenage years between Pidge and I. She said I was a 'lone wolf' type." 

"Not a team player, huh?" Lance teased, full well knowing he was not a people person. Adam, Shiro, Pidge, Allura and Matt had made it their personal mission to remind Lance that every so often with embarrassing stories of his lack of strong social capabilities. 

Keith shook his head. "Honestly, I don't know how Shiro - or anything for that matter - put up with me in high school. I was a nightmare of a kid."

"Angsty?"

"The angstiest."

Lance laughed, fingers gliding further up his arm. A lot of the ink was patterns, lines and shapes that linked them all together. Lance wondered how many hours went into them, how much money and love had gone into turning his skin into a masterpiece. 

His fingertips softly and slowly traced each and every one of them, completely in awe.

"What's your favourite?" Lance asked, brushing over a rose. 

Keith's Adam's apple bobbed before he spoke. "Uh, probably my most recent one. Here I..." He paused as his hands grabbed at the hem of his shirt. "Do you mind?" It took him a moment longer than it should have to get the gist of what he was saying and shook his head.

_Oh hell no Keith I do not mind one little bit._

He then began to take his shirt off and Lance forced his mouth closed because the last thing he wanted to do was for Keith to see his jaw drop over his body. Who _was_ this guy? Who had the right to be _that_ hot? Lance knew he worked out, his arms were always out he wasn't blind to his bulging biceps and he occasionally sent Lance snapchat from inside a gym. But he had never seen him shirtless.

Now Lance knew.

And _boy_ he was not disappointed.

You couldn't blame him for salivating in his mouth just a little. It had been a _long_ time since he had gotten any action. We're talking _over_ a year long time.

He had pretty much forgotten about the actual reason Keith had decided to strip which was the large tattoo on his side. It covered his whole side from underneath his arm on his rib cage and down, finishing somewhere below his belt. It was gorgeous, with two large fish with leaves and flowers. It was stunning.

"They're koi fish," Keith explained. "My, uh... my dad's Japanese. He loved taking me to this Japanese garden near our house. They're supposed to symbolise good luck. I was only six when he died. But my most vivid memories of him after going to the ponds and looking at the fish for good fortune."

"I can tell why it's your favourite," Lance said softly. "It's gorgeous." It wasn't just the thoughtful design, but the story behind it as well. He was hesitant to touch. It felt too personal. Too private of memories to be shared around with just anyone. Maybe one day, just not today.

"Thanks," he said, pulling his shirt back down to cover himself.

"This makes me wish I wouldn't pass out at seeing a needle so I could get my own." Keith snickered at that.

"Really now?"

"Yup, then you could do it for me!" Lance grinned. Keith smiled at that too. The smile that got the butterflies in his stomach fluttering. 

"What even started your dislike for needles?"

"Oh god, okay, embarrassing story so don't be mean," he warned. Keith put his hands up in surrender. "Okay, so..." He pulled his hair back, revealing his ear. Keith frowned, brows scrunching together until he sparked with relisation.

"Is that a piercing scar?" Keith asked in disbelief.

"Yup."

"Why don't you wear earrings?"

"Because..." he trailed off and pulled the hair back off his other ear. 

"No scar." Keith noted. "Wait... did you...?"

"I was going through an identity crisis at seventeen so I went to go get my ears pierced. I got this one done, and all the sudden blood just started splurging out _everywhere._ And I already disliked needles and blood and I just instantly passed out. They obviously couldn't do my second one out cold. So..."

"So what? You never went back to get the other one done?"

Lance laughed sheepishly. "I was always too scared to go back. And I didn't want to wear just _one_ because that's basically announcing to the world I was gay according to my parents, and you know, _identity crisis_. Now every time I see a needle I'm out like a light." Keith began to snicker, trying to hide the action behind his hand. " _Hey!_ I said no laughing!"

"Actually, you said 'no being mean'."

"Laughing at my expense _is_ mean."

"Is it?"

" _Yes!"_

Keith fell into a spill of laughter, flattening Lance's hair down to cover his ears again. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry. It's kinda funny though." Lance rolled his eyes playfully.

"Whatever, Mr Edge Lord Works With Needles For a Living."

"Mr Edge - _what?_ "

Lance began laughing at that. Lance doesn't know how Keith does it, but he can somehow manage to brighten Lance's mood even if he was still exhausted from his lack of sleep the past week. Maybe he's laughing from sheer sleep deprivation. 

"Hey, Lance," Keith started, regaining his attention from his mirth. He looked to him and felt a jolt inside his chest as he realised how close they were sitting. 

"Hmmhm?" Lance murmured, eyes accidentally drifting down towards Keith's mouth.

And like he knew exactly what he was thinking, Keith cupped Lance's jaw with his hand before he spoke. "Can I kiss you?"

Another smile made its way to Lance's mouth. 

Keith smiled back, although his was laced with uncertainty. "Is that a yes?"

And that cute little look on his face, the hope in his eyes was what made Lance lean in and answer Keith's questions. Keith seemed a little surprised at first, but thankfully loosened up and kissed him back. Lance doesn't want to be cliché, but he could literally feel crackles of electricity burn between every touch. Absolutely igniting as Keith leaned in closer, guiding Lance to lie back on the couch.

Lance shouldn't be _this_ happy to be getting a little make out action, but here he is. Maybe it's because of how long it's been? Or maybe it's because it's with someone who he really, _really_ likes. It could even be because Keith's a good kisser? Was this guy just talented at everything? 

Lance decided it was most likely a combination of all of the above. 

Keith hovered over him, not putting any pressure or his weight on him, and the way he kissed and touched Lance is so... _gentle._ Not in a 'you oh so fragile flower I must protect' type of way. It felt like a caring kiss. Like he cared.

His heart leaped a little at that prospect.

Lance wrapped his arms around Keith's neck to drag him in closer. There was a smirk forming and pushing against his lips, only growing smugger as Lance tangled his fingers into hair that was _way_ softer than he thought it would be. Scrunching up the hair he let Keith suck lightly at his bottom lip.

He hadn't realised how much he'd missed kissing until now, with lips on his and a handful of hot male on top of him.

Keith's hand was warm on his side, causing a light tingle as he squeezed the area.

A happy hum from the man on top of him caused more heat to circle through his body. Lance unlatched his hand from Keith's hair, travelling his now freed fingers to his neck and chest. He felt himself melting into it, to the point where his lips started to tingle from overuse and felt like minutes could easily drag into an hour.

Fingertips could've been subtle if they weren't scorching against Lance's skin as Keith slipped his minutely underneath the hem of his shirt. Lance hummed in encouragement, an unspoken _yes, go further._ He obliged, hands grasping the skin by his waist and-

The distant wails of screaming shock Keith more than Lance, springing off him like a teenager getting caught by his parents. Lance blinked, letting himself adjust to the light, fading sensation and the sudden noise going through the appartment. Once back, he snickered as he looked up at Keith who was wide eyed and pink cheeked. The laughs leaving his lips gained his attention, now looking down at Lance.

"Alright there big guy?" Lance chuckled, nibbling to bottom of his lip to stop his smile, fingertips tracing Keith's jaw.

"Uh..." Keith trailed off before something clicked and he leaned back, giving Lance room to sit up. "Sorry," he murmured sheepishly, smile awkward and shy.

"Don't be. Seriously," Lance said, prompting more blushes. "Come on, let's go see what she needs." Lance stood up, holding his hands out to Keith in attempt to pull him to his feet. Once at his feet Lance tugged him in the direction of the nursery, opting not to let go of his hand as they walked.

Oh god did Lance hope that Keith wanted to stick around after this weekend, because he really wanted to do _that_ again.

* * *

It was the next day and Lance was asleep on the couch when Keith came back, hands filled with groceries. The guy had practically exploded into excitement when Keith offered to cook dinner. He thought the sentiment would be nice, as Lance was exhausted. Plus, it was his last night tonight, he would be leaving in the afternoon for a late shift at the tattoo parlour.

He tiptoed into the kitchen and put down the ingredients, doing his best not to wake Lance up. A distant sound of baby babble made Keith's ears perk, walking down to the nursery to see Vivian standing in her crib, hands holding onto the railings. She had taken an afternoon nap after a distressful cry over her teething, but now she seemed happy, bending her little knees in a bounce with a smile on her face as she spotted him.

"Hey Vivian," Keith smiled gently, reached into the crib to pick her up. Carefully he placed her on his hip just like Lance always did. She grabbed onto his shirt with her tiny fists, starting to talk to him in her baby gibberish. He hummed in acknowledgement as he walked out and down the hallway to the main room. Lance was still asleep on the couch, arm dangling off and legs squished up. Keith put Vivian by her pile of toys on the floor, hoping it would entertain her for the time being while he started to prepare for dinner.

He kept an eye on Vivian as he prepped the food, Lance not making a peep until Keith began to cook the beef. The sizzling was loud and it must've been enough for him to stir awake.

"Hey Vivian." His voice was groggy, but Keith from here could sense the smile on his face as she noticed he was awake and crawled over to him, making little noises as she did. He chuckled and left her with her toys as he sat up and stretched. Humming contently, he then looked over to Keith, a soft smile on his lips. He was so undeniably adorable when sleepy. Keith was definitely going to miss that when he went home. "Whatever that is, it smells amazing," Lance said, getting to his feet and walked over, inhaling deeply.

"Bulgogi. It's a Korean dish my birth mother taught me to cook." Lance 'ahhed' as he sat up on the kitchen bench, watching over the process as Keith turned up the heat on the frying pan.

"I've been meaning to ask you about that," Lance murmured, rubbing his eyes. "You were in the foster system, right? But you seem to be pretty close to your birth mother... Is that rude to ask?"

"No it's fine. If you can tell me about Rachel I can tell you about Krolia and all my drama," he insisted, shaking the pan by the handle to stir the food so it cooked evenly. "Krolia and my dad were pretty young when I happened." Instantly he felt dumb as realised they weren't really _that_ young when you compared Lance's age. It had just always been one of the many excuses his dad made for Krolia when Keith was child. "She didn't want kids. She had a career in the military and didn't want to give it up. So she wasn't going to go through with the pregnancy but did in the end, couldn't go through with an abortion."

He noticed the way Lance's eyes glanced over to Vivian. It made him wonder if Rachel had ever considered the same thing.

"She was going to put me up for adoption but my dad took me, knowing it would end their relationship." Keith had never understood why he did that. He obviously had loved her, his eyes always softened whenever Keith asked about her.

"Krolia didn't know that he died until I was 13, and by that stage I was already living with the Shirogane's. She said she didn't want to come in and throw another obstacle in my life. She did come and find me when I was 18. It took a year for me to actually speak to her."

"You must've have been conflicted," Lance said softly.

"I...I was furious at her to begin with. I hated her for all I had been through. Going through his death alone..." He stirred the food again. 

"Can I ask what happened to him?"

"He was a Fireman. Died on duty trying to save an elderly woman. Neither of them got out."

There was a pinch in Lance's face which Keith would tell he was trying to hide. He knew Keith hated pity.

"It was hard, but slowly I began to forgive her. We've been mending over the past couple of years. In a way she's really all that I have left of my dad, so it's nice to be able to have her in my life." He handed Lance a plate who took it carefully.

"Thank you for sharing that with me. I know it's hard. It doesn't matter how long ago it was."

Keith smiled a little at Lance, it was nice to talk to someone who got it.

"Also, hello? This looks incredible. Can't believe you can cook," Lance said in awe, leaning in closer to inspect the dish. 

"Don't speak too soon, you haven't tried it yet," Keith said, moving to go sit at the dining table.

Lance ended up loving the meal, and conversation flowed easily between them as they spoke about anything and everything. It was nice to have someone to talk to. He'd been living alone ever since he left his college dorm after his first year and only ever had Kosmo to hang with in the afternoons. It was nice to have human company, especially when it was Lance.

They were so in deep with their conversation that Keith hadn't noticed Vivian had gone quiet. His eyes drifted across the room to the rug where her toys were. He spotted her instantly, smile on her face and looking in their direction, standing on her own two feet.

_Standing._

"Lance," Keith whispered, mind remembering an earlier conversation with Lance about hoping to record the moment of her first steps. He reached for his phone in his pocket.

Lance looked up from his half eaten plate to Keith, looking a little concerned by his tone.

"Look," he said, eyed darting to Vivian's direction to prompt Lance. He frowned and turned his head, eyes widening instantly. Slowly and carefully he moved to the ground, extending his arms outwards.

"Hey, Vivi," he said with a smile. "Come to papa."

For a second Keith thought she was going to sit back down and crawl, but luckily he pressed record anyway because the little girl shakily took a tiny step forward.

Lance made an excited squeaking sound and even Keith could feel the excitement rise. He wanted to cheer and encourage her but didn't want to disrupt her concentration. She took another little step -wobbling a little - which caused Lance to wince, as if he were expecting her to fall.

She didn't.

She took another tiny step, eyes looking to Lance and smile growing. She made grabby hands towards Lance and took another step.

"Good girl Vivian! Keep going!" Lance beamed, voice cracking slightly, like he was on the verge of tears.

Three more steps and she was beginning to wobble a little more. Making a cry noise she clenched her outward fists, almost like she was frustrated that she couldn't reach her father faster. Lance wriggled a little closer.

"You're doing amazing."

Vivian continued with a few more long seconds, taking a few steps before her little legs came out from under her and she plopped back down to the ground. Lance cheered and closed the distance between, swooping her into his arms to hold her high in the air.

"You did it! Oh my _god_ you did it! You're so amazing! Look at you! You just _walked!"_ Lance praised, jumping around the room excitedly. Vivian giggled as Lance spun her around. He ran over to Keith, holding her up in front of Keith's camera. "Did you see that? My baby girl _just walked!"_

Keith couldn't help but grin at the display of blatant pride on Lance's face.

"Please tell me you got all of that on camera?" Lance whined and but grinned more as Keith nodded in affirmation. "Thank god! Oh my god I'm so excited!" Lance beamed, pressing a kiss to the top of Vivian's head. "You're amazing _mija,"_ he said then turned to Keith. "Isn't she amazing?"

Keith's smile turned soft as he watched Lance coo over his daughter, hugging her tightly to his chest.

"Yeah," he said, eyes unable to leave either of them. "Amazing."

* * *

Lance woke up to an empty bed.

At first he reasoned that Keith probably just went to the bathroom, but after a few minutes of stillness Lance felt his tensions rise.

Groggily he sat up, rubbing his eyes as he glanced to the clock on his bedside table. It was well and truly past midnight so he wouldn't be winning Lance over by cooking him breakfast. He sniffed a little with the cold night air before slipping out from under the warm blankets, trudging down the hallway towards the main room when he heard a soft voice at the end of the hallway.

Walking quietly Lance approached Vivian's bedroom, peeping his head through the door to see a sight that had him absolutely dumbstruck.

Keith was hushing Vivian who was sniffling, hand on her back, rubbing tentative circles and rocking his body back and forth in soothing motions. Keith murmured something to her that Lance's ears couldn't quite hear.

A stupidly dumb smile spreads across Lance's face at the precious sight, heart expanding a few sizes. It swiped away his remaining sleepiness, only filling him with affection as Keith rocked his daughter back to sleep. Keith grinned to himself proudly as he realised she had fallen asleep when her hand that had been scrunched up in his hair had fallen loose.

Oh - so carefully Keith put Vivian in her crib, being extra conscientious to not jostle her awake. He tucked her in the blankets, giving a sigh of relief as he completed the mission. Tiptoeing, Keith then moved to the door.

His shoulders tensed up as he spotted Lance standing there, mouth opening to gush out whispered apologies. "I'm sorry! She was crying and you were asleep and I didn't want to wake you up and-"

Now Lance had been raised to never interrupt someone who was talking, because you know, it's rude. But he deemed this to be a special case scenario.

He grabbed Keith's face and pulled him in to kiss the hell out of him. How could he not when he had just acted so _perfectly?_

Keith, tensed at first like before, but relaxed into Lance's embrace, kissing him back sweetly and comfortingly.

Lance pulled back, nose nudging against Keith's. He's so close to his handsome face, able to take in every gorgeous detail from the flicker in his eyes to the surprised smile curving on his lips.

"You're really in this, huh?" Lance whispered. Keith blinked, showcasing his dark lashes.

"Of course." His breath was warm against his face and filled with truth. It made Lance smile.

"Can I finally accept your offer?" Lance asked, watching the confusion turn to relisation on Keith's face.

"You want to be my boyfriend?" Keith said, looking surprised but not displeased. If anything, he looked like he was about to scream in celebration.

Lance wrapped his arms around Keith's neck, pulling them in close. "I would really love that." They both gave a small, flushed giggle of anxiousness before Lance grabbed him and pulled him back to his eager lips. Keith hummed happily and grabbed at his hips, thumbs rubbing his covered skin.

Lance kind of wanted to change that.

He pulled back, grabbing Keith's hand before pulling him back to his bedroom to properly celebrate.

* * *

Keith woke up with Lance's arm over him and face nuzzled into the back of his neck.

Last night had been nothing but amazing. Keith couldn't stop the growing giddiness and the smile crawling on the corners of his mouth at remembering.

Moving with caution, Keith rolled over so he was facing Lance. He was still asleep, breathing deep and warm, arms reaching out in his subconscious state for him.

For him. _Christ._

Keith wriggled in close, his arm going around him to pull him in closer. Lance sighed contently, skin warm as their legs tangled together, face smooshing into his collarbone. His palm automatically began to rub up and down Lance's back.

Keith hadn't felt this way about anyone in a long time. Hadn't woken up after a night in the sheets with such excitement to speak to them again, to see them smile and talk about whatever they loved to talk about. To just be coddled in their presence. Warm. Safe. Cared for.

Keith's fingers trace along Lance's bare canvas skin, so different from his inked body but so damn gorgeous.

Keith didn't get feelings often, but when he did he fell hard.

He wasn't quite there. It's only just their beginning, no need to rush those type of feelings when they best bloom over time. But he knew one day he would be in love with Lance. It was inevitable, really.

Lance's face twitched, looking like he was seconds from waking up. Just like he suspected, his eyes fluttered and opened, revealing pretty dark blue eyes that strike something deep in Keith's gut.

Lance smiled sleepily, and ducked his head under Keith's chin.

"Good morning, boyfriend." He could feel Lance's smile against his neck, making Keith's adoration multiple.

That's right. Keith had now gotten that new title. It sounded good.

"Good morning, Lance."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> pls read my note at the beginning of the chapter if you haven't <3
> 
> ALSO YAY THEY BANGED AND ARE BOY FRIENDS GOOD FOR THEM 👏👏👏👏
> 
> see you next update~


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> UPDATEEEEEEE ON MY STUPID HAND
> 
> so last week i said i didn't know when i was gonna have my surgery and i still don't but it's going to be around 2 months away. Which sucks for me in general BUT gives me plenty of time to finish this fic before I do so that's a positive!!!!
> 
> you also may have noticed I have put in that this fic has twelve chapters! which means it'll finish in a months time BUT IT WON'T SINCE I HAVE PLANNED AND WRITTEN LIKE A HEAP OF BONUS CHAPTERS SO YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY
> 
> alSO!!!!
> 
> If you were interested in my stripper lance au on instagram you should check it out!!! The first part is called 'off the clock' and the second one is called 'Big White Lies'!!!

"Kiki!" A shrilled voice made Keith's head turn as Vivian made her way over as fast as her little legs could go. Even though it had been four months since Vivian's first steps Keith still wasn't used to her moving so fast. It made him wince, as balance still wasn't her strong suit. She looked like she was going to trip over any second. 

"Kiki?" Pidge asked smugly, making Keith roll his eyes. 

"Shut up," he grumbled lightly, ignoring her snicker as he turned back to Vivian who stood in front of him. She extended her arms upwards.

"Ki!" Her smile had a few more teeth than when he first met her. He's still mystified about how fast kids grow.

"Hey Vee," he said as he bent down and picked her up with ease. She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Where's your papa?"

"Here!" Lance announced his presence as he entered the room. "I'm gonna need to get that kid a leash soon, she bolted as she as she heard your voice," he said as he walked over to Keith's side. "Hey there." His smile was warm before he pressed a kiss to Keith's cheek. It was greatly appreciated since he hadn't seen Lance this week with clashes of schedules and whatnot. 

Keith smiled as his cheek was left warm from the touch. 

"Hey yourself." Lance's little dimples that only appeared on rare occasions with big grins came out. Looking into Lance's eyes and seeing his smile always felt like a secret conversation. 

Vivian made an upset noise which Lance chuckled at. "You feeling left out, huh?" He leaned in to kiss her cheek loudly which seemed to be the perfect answer because now she was giggling. She turned to Keith expectantly, Keith was smart enough to know what she wanted. He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and tickled her sides, ending in his eardrum nearly getting burst as she squealed with laughter. 

"Ugh, you are disgustingly sweet," Pidge muttered looking at them all like they'd done something gross. 

"We know you secretly have a heart," Lance teased, arm going around Keith waist and chin resting on his shoulder.

"I hate to admit it..."

"But...?" Lance prompted.

"So I won't." Lance huffed while Keith rolled his eyes with a smile. He couldn't complain though. Despite the playful taunt, she was happy for them. She just showed it in a different way.

"Where's everyone else? They should be here soon, right?" Lance asked, putting the backpack down filled with Vivian's things, rolling his shoulders. 

Keith opened his mouth to reply but before he could get a word out the door swung open and Allura waltzed into the room. She froze when she saw Keith, only it wasn't Keith that made her smile,.

"Hello Vivian!" She cheered, arms already extended out for her as dashed over. Keith handed her over without a fight because he really didn't want a finger bitten off or something. Allura was crazy.

"Ra-Ra," Vivian said, smile wide as she grabbed and started to play with Allura's hair.

"Yes! It's Ra-Ra!" Allura cooed, swaying Vivian in her arms like it was a game.

Keith tried to suppress his laugh, turning to Lance who was watching the two girls. He couldn't quite place the expression on his boyfriend's face. He was smiling, but not a full blown grin, just the subtle hint of a curve in the lips. Despite it, the smile didn't reach his eyes. He looked a little... sad.

As soon as it appeared on his face it left and by the time he looked back to Keith he was smiling.

“Are you nervous for tomorrow?” He asked, reminding him that he was going to be officially meeting Lance’s family tomorrow. He wasn’t nervous, he was terrified. Meeting his last boyfriend’s family had been a whole awkward debacle. Doomed the moment he walked in and his ex-boyfriend’s mother's eyes nearly shot out of her head when she saw his tattoos. She looked on the verge of passing out when he told her he wanted to be a tattoo artist.

“Yeah,” Keith admitted, scratching the back of his neck. “I just really want it to go well, I know family is important to you.”

After tragedy, families either drifted apart and became distant with one another or were immensely close and stuck together like glue. That second one was definitely the McClain family. He hadn’t even met them and he knew that just from the way Lance spoke about them all. Out of everyone to be protective of, Vivian was on the top of the list for all of them. Right after her was Lance.

Keith wouldn’t blame them either, the two of them have been affected by Rachel’s death more than anyone else with their whole life changing.

Lance sympathetically rubbed his shoulder. “You’ll be fine, I’ve told them you’re a good guy.”

“That’s a good start.” The positivity didn't last long. His nerves were really starting to get the better of him.

What if they didn’t like him? What if they didn’t think he was good enough for Lance _or_ a good influence on Vivian? Family was so important to his boyfriend, there was a good chance if his family hated his guts Keith would get dumped quicker than trash in the dumpster.

Lance grabbed his hand and squeezed it, making every ugly thought and it’s spirals drift away.“You’re going to be fine. I promise.”

Despite how hard it was to do, he decided to believe his boyfriend.

“Lunch is ready!” Hunk called out from the kitchen.

Merging the two friendship groups together had been one of the best decisions ever made and was mainly thanks to Pidge. It was always fun to just hang out every couple of weekends and have lunch or drinks or to do something together. He also thought it was good for Lance to get out and about, isolation was never good for someone as extra as him.

Shay and Hunk were hosting today, and they were always Keith’s favourites because they were the best cooks in the group. It was always a treat to go there and have home-made food. Even better because they also always managed to cater to Vivian so Lance didn’t have to prepare food. Today on her menu was mashed potatoes that somehow has been spread all over her face and down the front of her bib.

“You know what? I can really see the family resemblance from here,” Pidge said. The table laughed and Lance pouted.

“Vivian is superior to all of us and we all know it,” Lance said and used his finger to scoop a bit of the potato off her cheek and back onto her plate. “She just doesn’t know how to use utensils yet, but once she does it’s over for all of you bitches.”

“I’m almost offended by how much is missing her mouth. Hunk’s mashed potato is too good to waste,” Matt said, moaning around his fork.

“You’re doing great sweetie, don’t listen to the mean Holts,” Allura cooed across the table which made Vivian smile and a big mouthful of potato fall out of her mouth. Gross as fuck, but the cuteness of her smile taking over her face overwrote it.

“Babies are somehow the grossest and cutest things in the world and that blows my mind,” Adam said shaking his head in dismay as he watched Vivian. “Speaking of things that blew my mind, Lance, you’re actually game enough to introduce your socially constipated boyfriend to your parents?” Now it was time for Keith to not be the one laughing with everyone as he glowered at his soon to be brother-in-law.

“I’m not socially constipated.”

“Yes, yes you are.” He just rolled his eyes at them and let them continue the conversation.

“Yep! He’s meeting the fam.” Lance grinned, the happy expression only made Keith feel nauseous at the idea.

“Wow, that’s going to be fun for you. You’re in for a wild ride with the McClain’s,” Hunk mused. “Is he meeting everyone?”

“No, just Veronica, Marco and my parents. Luis, Lisa and the kids won’t be there. Busy and stuff. Next time, hopefully.”

Keith had been quizzed and informed about the chaos that is Lance's family. There were a lot of them, the opposite of what Keith had grown up with.

He knew that Lance was the youngest and that he had three older siblings. One of those being Veronica, and then his two other brothers Marco and Luis. From there, Luis had two children and a wife.

“You’re going to love them!” Hunk insisted to Keith. “It’s kind of like a big pack of Lance’s.”

“Yeah, loud as hell,” Pidge murmured.

“I’m not gonna lie to you, my family is pretty fucking loud. _Whoops_! Sorry Vivi, but I used a bad word so let’s pretend that you didn’t hear it and never repeat it in front of Abuela.” The last part was in a sing song tune which made Vivian clap her hands together. Squishing mashed potato between her tiny fingers.

"Want me to get the baby wipes?” Keith asked, considering he was done with his meal and so was Vivian. Except half of it was all over her face, clothes and the floor while Keith managed to eat most of his. Lance pointed it to his backpack across the room.

“Thank you!” He chimed, blowing a kiss across the room that had the rest of the table groaning but made Keith silently blush on the inside.

* * *

Keith had two long sleeve button up shirts. The only reason he had two was because Shiro suggested that he could wear them interchangeably.

He chose the nicer of the two to go and meet Lance‘s parents and siblings.

“Does this look okay?” He asked Kosmo who had just woken up from a nap. He lifted his head, only to go back down to rest between his paws and close his eyes.

“You are so helpful,” he grumbled as he undid the top button for the fourth time. He looked at his reflection and took a deep breath as he assessed his outfit. With another button now open he could see more of his tattoos. Maybe it was best to do up the button and hide it a bit more? But then again, it didn’t really matter what he did because there was no hiding the tattoos forever. It was obvious he had them, and they weren’t going away any time soon. Maybe he just needed to bite the bullet now and embrace it like he usually did.

He turned away from the mirror and grabbed his keys.

Lance said that they weren’t going to judge him based on appearance, but it was almost impossible to do that. Everyone judged everyone on how they looked. Whether they looked clean and presentable. He couldn’t really change what Lance’s parents first impression of him were going to be from just looking at him, but he knew that he could alter what they thought of him afterwards by the way he acted. By showing how dedicated he was to their son and granddaughter.

That, Keith hoped, was going to be what won them over.

* * *

A part of Keith was weirdly surprised by how nice the McClain house was.

It was in a cookie cutter street, with trimmed hedges and white picket fences. It was a two story house, which was a little overkill to Keith considering none of the McClain children lived at home anymore. But then again, maybe the house was kept so that the grandchildren and extended family would have plenty of room to stay.

Because that’s the vibe that they gave Keith. Tightnit.

He wrapped his knuckles together and knocked against the wooden door. Even from the outside he could hear voices from in the house chatting away, laughing and embracing one another’s company. He really hoped he wouldn’t disrupt it by joining in.

He was more than thankful when Lance opened the door. It would be less daunting walking by his side and then meeting a family member right off the bat.

Lance was smiling when he opened the door, already knowing who it was going to be. Something in the way Lance looked so calm and in his element soothed some of Keith’s worries.

“Hey, you’re here!” He threw his arms around him for a quick hug, then pulled back just enough for their faces to be a few centimeters apart as he spoke. “Ready to come inside?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” Lance grabbed his hand and gave him an encouraging tug to take the first steps inside.

“You’ll be fine! I’ve put in a lot of good words for you so all you have to do now is be your kind and lovely self. Love the shirt by the way.” He added a wink at the end before having a mischievous grin himself. Keith didn’t bother asking what he was laughing about as his boyfriend continued to drag him into the house.

It was crazy to think that seven months ago Lance had passed out in the shop and they were nothing more than acquaintances with mutual friends. Now Keith was meeting some of the most important people in his life as his boyfriend.

Even though he was as nervous as all dog shit, he was still excited to be here. His life felt more purposeful ever since he had met Lance and Vivian. More content and like he was really going somewhere with someone and not just strolling along by himself doing whatever he pleased. He had other people to think about and he _liked_ it.

Keith walked into the big wide open living room where the majority of Lance’s family were situated. The woman he assumed to be Lance’s mother was on the couch with Vivian on her knees. She spoke animatedly to her. Pitch high and smile overtaking her face.

A man sat on the ground by Lance’s mother‘s feet, also seemingly talking playful with the toddler. There was another woman who looked similar to Lance and from what Keith could tell from the photo on his fridge she also looked a lot like Rachel. An older, more mature Rachel with lighter hair and glasses.

They all turned to look at him at the exact same time, like a flock of birds hearing the sound of seeds dropping to the ground.

The man he assumed was Marco was the first to make his way over and confirm his assumption by extending his hand and saying, “Hey man, I’m Marco. Nice to finally meet you.”

Keith didn’t have any blood related siblings so it was always so intriguing to him how brothers and sisters could look so similar yet so different. Marco had lighter skin than Lance, but their face structure and smiles were pretty much identical.

Keith shook Marco’s hand firmly. “Keith, so you’re the brother that dropped a bucket of paint on Lance’s head when he was three?”

Marco threw his head back and laughed then patted Keith’s shoulder.

If there was one thing Keith knew about Lance was that he liked a good laugh, so he wasn’t surprised when Marco seemed instantly warmed up to him after the mention of the funny story.

“That would be me! Come with me and we’ll get you a seat, then I can tell you _better_ stories about Lance that’ll put the bucket story to shame.”

“Umm, how about we _not_ tell embarrassing stories about Lance?” His boyfriend cut in, grabbing Keith by the bicep to drag him over to the other two family members in the room. He decided to go to his mother first, it seemed like the best place to start.

Being closer to her made him realise how much she similar she was to Lance. It wasn’t much in the way their appearances, but the way they gave off warmth with just a look. She smiled motherly at him even though Keith was a stranger.

“It’s really lovely to meet you Mrs McClain. Lance had told me a lot about you all and I-”

Vivian who was sitting on her grandmother’s lap turned her head at the sound of his voice, a smile creeping onto her face and a delighted sound leaving her mouth. She raised her hands up towards him and her obvious desires made Mrs McClain chuckle.

“Well it looks like somebody wants to say hello too.”

And she wasn’t wrong, but Keith almost felt uncomfortable with the fact that Vivian wanted to be held by _him_ over his grandmother. He hoped she wouldn’t take it the wrong way, that she didn’t feel like he was taking both Lance and Vivian away from her.

Keith dated a boy in college and his mother really disliked him for the fact that he wanted to spend more time with him than her. She’d give him filthy expressions every time he invited Keith to dinner. She hated everything about him from his tattoos to his race. It was pretty obvious that when he broke up with Keith it had a lot to do with his mother's input.

Even when Vivian went into his arms, Mrs McClain still held that warmth in her features rather than being irritated. That had to be a plus in some way.

“It’s lovely to meet you too Keith, we were starting to believe that Lancey had made you up.” Her laughter was deep but very soothing. The others laughed along with her which made Vivian giggle just to be a part of the fun. “Oh and Keith, you can call me Rosa, No need for that Mrs McClain jargon!”

Keith couldn’t help but compare to his ex’s mother who had never suggested he call her by the first name even though he dated her son for almost a year. He smiled. “Okay then, thank you Rosa.”

Rosa smiled brightly, not fading until Lance dragged him away to sit down on the couch next to him and Veronica.

“Nice to finally meet you. Honestly I’m a little shocked that you didn’t come here looking like Billy Ray Cyrus after all that talk about your mullet,” Veronica said with a devious grin.

Keith looked to his boyfriend with a cocked up brow.

“What?” Lance said defensively. “She asked me to paint a picture and I described your hair.”

“It’s not a mullet, though.”

“Keith, honeybunch, sweetie pie, darling, that thing on your head is a mullet.”

“No,” Marco butted in. “I don’t think it’s a mullet.”

Lance looked floored by that. “What do you _mean?_ That is a whole party in the back and business in the front shindig going on! Hey Vivi,” Lance said, gaining Vivian’s attention. “Does Keith have a mullet?”

Vivian sucked at her thumb and looked to Keith who shook his head to her to influence her answer. It worked just the trick. She shook her head and giggled as Lance gasped in offence. “Keith! Don’t influence the young!”

“Says you, the one asking a 16-month-old if your boyfriend has a mullet,” Veronica snickered into her hand.

“She’s a good judge of character.”

“Having a mullet isn’t a character trait.”

“What would you know Marco? Your hair looks like it hasn’t been brushed and six months.”

“Not all of us want to waste 30 minutes doing our hair every morning.”

Lance so loudly that Vivian on Keith’s lap jumped a little in surprise at the sudden noise, it went unnoticed by her father who went on his tangent.

“It’s called _self care!”_

After that the three siblings went on to go into a battle of bickering. Hunk was right in saying they were loud. It seemed to be a normal occurrence among the siblings considering Rosa just smiled with a shake of the head as she watched her children.

Keith wouldn’t lie and say it wasn’t quite amusing to see the three raise their voices and point fingers like they had big points to make. It was interesting how different siblings had different dynamics. He and Shiro were never really like this, sure they teased each other but it wasn’t usually this… Loud.

Vivian stood with her sock covered feet on Keith’s thighs and grabbed his face with her tiny hands. She giggled in delight as she squished up his cheeks. Obviously she wasn’t charmed by her father, uncle and aunty’s bickering.

Keith’s puff of breath vibrated as it left his mouth. Vivian thought it was pretty hilarious and decided she wanted to hear again and squished his face more. One more time he made the funny noise before he took her hands from his face and then began to swing them around so she wouldn’t be upset. As much fun as the new game was to her, it was honestly starting to hurt his face.

“You seem like you know how to handle kids,” Rosa commented as her children continue to squabble.

“Eh, I don’t know about that. I guess I’m just used to Vivian,” he answered honestly.

Rosa nodded with a hum. “I see. Are children of your own something you’ve always wanted?”

 _“Mama!”_ Lance hissed under his breath, finally coming out of his argument. “You’ve known the guy for two minutes! Ask him what his favourite fruit is not if he wants to have babies!”

Veronica and Marco begin to attempt to hide their sneaky laughter behind their hands and by turning their heads away.

Keith couldn’t help but go red at how blunt Lance’s phrasing was. But he also wanted to impress his mother by not avoiding the question.

“It’s okay, I don’t mind.” He turned back to Rosa. “For a long time I didn’t really think I was going to be capable of being in a family or creating one with somebody else. I was in and out of a lot of foster homes growing up so I didn’t really know that I could ever really have a family like that. But it’s something I’ve always wanted. So, uh, yeah, I’d like to have kids.”

That was probably a little bit of an information overload; TMI. But Rosa just smiled and nodded.

That had obviously been the right answer in her books.

He hadn’t realised how right that answer had been until he glanced over to Lance who smiled gently at him. His lips twisted like he wanted to grin more but didn’t want to be too obvious with his happiness.

A click and close of a door made everyone’s head turn to see a man who Keith assumed to be Lance’s dad because of how similar they looked and his older appearance. His skin was darker and his body type was tall and lean just like his son’s.

The held up the bags he was holding with a smile. “Let’s get this party started!”

Apparently Lance got more than just his looks from his father.

* * *

Keith didn’t know how the McClain’s did it, but Keith’s college boyfriend’s family had never made him feel comfortable for even a second. But today he felt happy and comfortable enough to just sit back, eat some impressively good food and talk about absolute bullshit with this family.

Vivian had still yet to leave his lap, and when Lance’s father Matteo went to grab her for a cuddle so he could say hello she latched onto Keith’s neck and refused to let go.

He was quietly listening to Rosa talk about one of their cousins when Lance patted his cheek.

“She’s asleep,” he whispered quietly as he brushed some hair out of her face. Keith hadn’t even noticed the toddler had fallen asleep against his chest.

“Probably should’ve realised that when she went quiet,” he murmured back.

“Yeah, I might put her in the spare room. My parents have a cot there.”

They carefully changed her over from Keith’s hands to Lance’s. Other than stirring a little bit at the movement she didn't move, not even opening her eyes.

“I’ll be right back, don’t be mean to Keith while I’m gone,” Lance probably only half joked as he stood.

“Oh don’t worry Lancey!” Marco said, slinging an arm around Keith’s shoulders. “We will take good care of him for you.”

Lance narrowed his eyes his brother, obviously not trusting his word. He gave his mother a quick look that basically said ‘please don’t let him torture my boyfriend’, before he moved down the hallway and disappeared.

“You know what, Keith? I think it’s safe for us to all say that we were a little unsure when Lance said he was dating someone,” Marco said straight off the bat, not wasting a second of time without Lance. “I mean, you know our situation. We all kind of freaked out a little when he said he had a boyfriend. But you’re a real cool dude, Lance has been a lot happier lately. Even when it’s getting to this time of year.”

“This time of year?” He asked, brows furrowing.

“It’s their… it’s _his_ birthday soon,” Rosa explained.

It’s Lance’s birthday soon? Keith had no idea. Lance had not said a single thing to him.

“Oh.”

“What they’re trying to say is,” Veronica said, taking over from her mother and brother. “Is that despite our concerns initially, we are really glad Lance has you. You might not even know that you’re doing it but you’re making him so much happier since what happened. His life is the one that has changed the most after Rachel, I think you’ve grounded him. The person he was before you was kind of a mess, you’re bringing him back to the _him_ before. We’re thankful for that.”

Keith looked around at the Lance’s family, the people closest to him and the ones he had known him since he was born. Keith was so sure they were going to have their defenses up and go protective mode. In reality they were thanking him. Veronica was right, Keith didn’t know how much happier he had made Lance but obviously his family saw it.

He wasn’t quite sure how to respond to that.

How bad of a place was Lance in after Rachel died?

How bad of a place was he still in?

“Has he said anything to you?” Rosa asked, leaning forward. The concern on her face was evident. “He tends to bottle his feelings, But I thought maybe he had consoled in you.”

Keith froze. They had only been a couple of instances when Lance brought up Rachel. Just fleetingly, not in any deep stories or anything. Small things.

It’s then he realised that they had never really talked about it. Was it something that he should be talking about? He knew himself how hard it was to lose someone. Keith dealt with it on his own and in his own way and assumed that’s how Lance did it too and that if he needed more support that he would go to Keith. He’d never thought about bringing it up with Lance on his own initiative, simply because he knew that he himself hated it when people tried to force his feelings out of him.

But maybe Lance was different? Did he need a little push to feel like he could talk about those things?

And it wasn’t like Lance was in a depressive heap, he was leaving the house and living his life and going to work and loving Vivian and raising her the best way he knew how. He was functioning, to put it bluntly. That didn’t mean he wasn’t sad though, it just made it harder to notice. Like where he would drift off into a daydream or would suddenly go quiet in a noisy room.

Were those signs of a sad Lance? He didn’t know Lance before Rachel’s death, how was he supposed to know what the difference was?

Shit. Had Keith been a bad boyfriend?

Lance's family were all still watching him. How the hell was he supposed to tell them that he had no idea?

“And badda bing badda boom! That’s how you get a child to sleep! I think that might have been a record?” Lance paraded back into the room and sat next to Keith with a big smile. “So… I’m glad that you’re still here in one piece.” He gave him a big smile, could’ve won awards and everything with it. Usually it would make Keith feel all warm and fuzzy, but now he’s just nauseated.

Was Lance depressed and hiding it from him and everyone else? Was there something he could do for him that he wasn’t already doing?

“Of course we did!” Marco insisted, giving Keith a pat on the back. “We like him! Totally Big Brother approved.”

“Not gonna lie your opinion means dog shit to me but I’m totally happy that you like him anyway,” Lance teased and gave Keith an excited smile. It was kind of like a smug smile that said ‘I told you so, I knew they would love you.’

Keith had never felt so happy and miserable at the same time.

* * *

Today was a success in Lance’s eyes.

In all honesty he wasn’t sure how it was going to go considering at the beginning his family had been pretty against it. It wasn’t like they didn’t want him to have happiness, it was just that everything had been happening so fast and so much all at once. Despite nobody having said it to his face, he's pretty sure that his family might have had suspicions that he was using Keith as a distraction.

But after today, he’s certain that they know he really like Keith.

Then from what he could see, they liked Keith as well.

Keith had been kind of quiet during their drive home back to Lance’s apartment. He’s generally a quieter dude. But he seemed to be thinking about something that had captured his attention. Had something been said while he hadn’t been in the room? Had something changed or made him uncomfortable?

He would personally kill his family if they had done something to scare him off.

Maybe Lance was just being paranoid? It had been a long time since he had introduced a boyfriend or girlfriend to his parents.

“Do you want me to carry her up?” Keith asked once he parked the car.

There was no way Lance was going to deny Keith coming and joining him in his apartment, even if it was just a little while. Of course he wished Keith could stay longer, or even for the night, but he had responsibilities himself. Mainly feeding Kosmo and keeping him company.

Vivian sat on the mat, playing around with her toys while they watched over her from the couch. She had a little more energy after her nap to disperse before Lance attempted to put her to bed.

“So,” he started rubbing his knees and leaned closer to Keith. “You have to now admit that you were wrong and I was right in the fact that I knew my parents were going to like you.” His teasing managed to grab a smile from Keith.

“I’m just happy they liked me enough to keep me in the house.”

He barked out a laugh that came out unexpectedly. “You seriously thought they were gonna kick you out or something?”

“Maybe? I told you my last boyfriend’s family hated me. I didn’t know what to expect.”

“Yeah, well, they were dumb and rude.” Their eyes locked onto one another's. They’ve done things far more embarrassing and revealing than staring into each other’s eyes but Lance can’t help but feel a little bashful by the tenderness on Keith’s face. He’s not sure if anyone has ever looked at him like that. “Why are you looking at me like that?” He asked, a nervous laugh tapering it off.

“I don’t know? Am I not allowed to look at you?” He was definitely teasing. 100% knowing the look was making Lance weak kneed.

“Absolutely not!” He put his palm to Keith’s cheek and pushed it so it wasn’t looking at him any more.

A squeal of joy brought them from both from their play fight. Vivian clashed the two toys she was playing with together and blew raspberries from her own lips, completely enthralled with her own company.

They turned their attention back to one another. This time Keith spoke first.

“Hey Lance, why didn’t you tell me it was your birthday coming up?”

He paused, blinking a few times in surprise by the sudden question. There was an answer to the simple question, but the thought of talking about it made him want to shrivel up. “Is it because of Rachel?”

He flinched at the accusation, but it was the truth.

“Rachel was my twin. Rachel _is_ my twin,” he corrected himself. “Celebrating it without her feels... _wrong_.”

Keith didn’t look all that surprised by his answer.

“I can understand that. It’s just…” He scratched his cheek. “It’s just, I’ve never really have asked you too much about Rachel and how you feel. You’ve had a really rough year and I just want to know that you’re okay.”

Lance couldn’t help but glance down at Vivian. So unaware. So robbed at such a young age, not even knowing what she had lost.

“I don’t really think there’s a straightforward answer to that question,” he said, still looking at her. “Sometimes it feels like it’s getting better. Like it’s all getting easier and I can finally keep going. And other days I just feel like shit. Or I’m having a good day and then one little thing triggers a memory of her and I just feel _numb_.”

Keith didn’t say anything, just listened to what Lance had to say.

“But I _have_ to be okay. I have someone who needs me, who relies on me. I don’t have time to break down,” he added. “Honestly, I think if Vivian wasn’t in my care I probably would’ve lost it by now.”

Keith stared at him closely. Lance wondered if he was just starting to see the cracks. Starting to see all of the things that he had been trying to push down and hide that made him undesirable.

Was this going to be too much too soon?

“I know you want to be okay for Vivian, but you don’t need to be okay for me.” Keith put a hand on his leg and squeezed. “There’s nothing you need to protect or hide from me, because I’m here for you. If you need help, let me help you. You don’t always have to be strong in front of me. I know our situations were wildly different, but I know what it’s like to lose someone. It’s hard.”

Lance nodded slowly, not trusting his voice from crumbling. Despite his throat constricting, wanting to dissolve into tears, his heart felt full in a weird way. Since Rachel‘s death he always felt a little empty. No matter how happy he was in the moment he just didn’t feel quite the same. But it’s these moments with Vivian or in this case Keith that made him feel like he will be okay in the end. He was going to get through it all and Keith was going to help him do that.

“Hey,” Keith said softly, loud enough to gain his attention back to the present. A considerate hand went to the side of his head, fingers threading through his hair as he looked over Lance’s face, like he was still trying to assess his emotions.

His eyes only moved away from Lance’s to his cheekbone as a little tear dribbled down his face. He quickly caught up with his thumb and wiped it away before it could roll down his face.

“I didn’t mean to make you upset.”

“You didn’t, I’m just feeling thankful that I have you and Vivi,” he said, managing a small genuine smile at the end of his words.

And just like that, in that quiet moment on the couch with Vivian on the floor smashing her toys together and Keith staring at him what felt like was straight into his soul he realised something quite dire.

He was dangerously close to falling in love with this guy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *sniff sniff* do i smell... angst????
> 
> ALSO HI LANCE STYLING HIS HAIR ON A REGULAR BASIS AGAIN??? THAT'S CALLED EMOTIONAL CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT MY FRIENDS
> 
> again, if were interested I have a stripper lance au on instagram (by username is iwriteshipsnotsailthem) The first part is called 'off the clock' and the second one is called 'Big White Lies' with more on the way :D
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this week's update! see you next time 💕💕💕


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we have a day early update yay!!!
> 
> so unrelated to this fic but what are some good 'klancey' songs or *cough, cough* songs about still being in love with an ex BECAUSE YOU BEST BELIEVE I'VE BEEN INSPIRED WE GETTING A NEW SERIES (if i ever write it?? most likely tho because i don't have a ~life~)
> 
> ALSO HI LOTS OF TEARS THIS CHAPTER YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED ❤❤❤

“How come neither of you told me that Lance’s birthday was coming up?” Keith asked his two friends who had known his boyfriend for much longer than he had.

They looked at him and then back at each other.

“We didn’t know if Lance wanted you to know,” Hunk started, twiddling his thumbs. “It’s kind of a sensitive subject form him now.”

Keith understood that, he really did. They were just looking out for what they thought Lance would want and they certainly didn’t want to upset him by disclosing information like that to him or anyone else in the group.

“I know, I just wish I would’ve known sooner so I could’ve prepared a proper present for him and organise the party better.”

Pidge and Hunk both jolted straight in their seats, eyes frantic and wide. “Are you _crazy?_ We weren’t even allowed to see him last year for his birthday because he was so distraught, and you want to throw him a _party_?” Pidge exasperated.

“I have to agree with Pidge,” Hunk added, looking the most unsure. “I don’t want to upset him or anything by doing a surprise party.”

“Which is why it isn’t going to be a surprise. I already asked if I could organise something for him and he said yes. It’s just not allowed to be on his actual birthday because he and his family are going down to Rachel's grave.”

Keith might have gotten expelled from school and suspended from a few others as a teenager, but he wasn’t a complete idiot. Of course he wasn’t going to just go and throw Lance a surprise party with a bunch of people and overwhelm him.

“It’s just going to be a small thing. Our group, some pizza and hanging out.”

Hunk took a deep breath and exhaled into his hands. “I just can’t believe he agreed. To be honest I never thought we were going to celebrate his birthday again.”

“Same,” Pidge said.

It hurt his heart a little, knowing how sad his last birthday would’ve been. Which was why he wanted to make this one memorable for a good reason.

“So you’ll help me organise it?” Keith asked.

“Of course we are going to help you!” Hunk said after removing his hands from his face. “I’m going to bake a cake and all! His favourite flavour.”

Keith then turned to Pidge. “What do you say?”

She rolled her eyes. “Well duh! If anyone deserves to have a good birthday party it’s Lance.”

He was so glad that Lance’s two closest friends were going to be helping him. If anyone knew what he liked and how he liked to have fun it was those too. There was no way he could mess it up with them on his side.

“Cool, now that we got that out of the way there’s one more thing I need help with. What the hell do I get Lance for his birthday?

Keith wanted to get him a nice present. It was his first birthday as a couple so he wanted to make it special.

“Honestly dude, anything that you get him he’s going to love.”

“Hunk, that’s sweet and everything but that helps him out close to nothing,” Pidge said. “You know him better than anyone, surely there is _something_ you know he wants or would like?”

Hunk hummed, crossing his arms and staring off at the far wall as he thought with intensity.

“As outlandish as Lance is, he really likes personal stuff. You know? Stuff with meaning. You don’t need to spend a lot of money, I think he just really appreciates the thought of a gift.”

It was a simple answer with a difficult resolution. Of course you can say something has meaning but first you have to find something worth it. It’s easier to say that something has special meaning to someone than it is to find it.

“Also you can never go wrong with chocolates and flowers. He loves that romantic stuff,” Hunk added on with a smile. “Anything super romantic and you’ll be in his good books until next birthday!”

“Chocolate, flowers and something thoughtful. Got it.” It wasn’t the most precise list, but it was a hell of a lot more than the idea that he had before this conversation. “Thanks guys. So what do you think kind of cake Lance would like?”

“Chocolate!” Pidge and Hunk both said at the same time.

“I always make this special chocolate cake from my grandmother’s recipe book! It’s his favourite!” Hunk said proudly.

“Okay then,” Keith said as he grabbed a notebook and pen. “That’s one thing sorted for Lance’s party. What next?”

* * *

It was safe to say at this stage that Keith was enamoured by Lance and Vivian.

Even Vivian, who hadn’t really been a plan in his dating life. But watching her grow and learn had made him a little bit (incredibly) soft for her.

It was hard to not like her. For starters, she was adorable with her chubby cheeks and big blue eyes. Along with her laughter, one of Keith’s favourite things about the little girl was her big blue eyes. They matched her father’s, being a common McClain feature.

Looks weren't the only similarity he saw between the two. They were both quite loud personalities, all bubbly and sweet but could turn shy when put under the pressure of certain situations.

By this stage Vivian could sleep through the night without screaming the place down which was great. The Improvement was evident by the lack of bags under Lance’s eyes. She rarely had tantrums, which was also a plus. But when she did, she exploded.

“No!” Vivian yelled, narrowing her eyes at her papa who looked like he was seconds away from losing his cool. This current disagreement between the two had been going back-and-forth like this for about 10 minutes. Vivian was obviously exhausted after a long day and very, very crabby because of it. Lance wasn’t backing down either.

“Vivian, it’s bath time. It’s time for a bath and then bed.”

“No!” She said with the stamp of her foot, big fat tears running down her cheeks.

“Vivian. Why don’t you want to take a bath? You _like_ baths.”

She hiccuped a sob, Cheeks red with a runny nose. “No,” she sniffled and glanced towards her pile of toys.

Lance knelt down in front of his daughter and tucked some hair behind her ear. “It’s too late to play. You need to take a bath-”

“No!” She said stubbornly, rubbing her wet eyes.

“Vivian,” Lance started again, voice not raising, but having an obvious authoritative tone to it. “You need to have a bath so you can go to bed. You can play all you want tomorrow.”

“Now.”

“No sweetie, it’s too late to play. Keith and I are going to go to bed too. We are all super sleepy. Aren’t you sleepy?”

Vivian sniffled as she thought about the question before more tears started falling. She nodded.

“Okay then, why don’t we take a nice bath and then we go to bed? Is that a fair deal?” She nodded again and rubbed her tired eyes before raising her hands in Lance’s direction. It was a silent sign of victory that had them both sighing in relief as Lance picked her up.

He looked over his shoulder to Keith and mouthed the words _‘get the booze’_ before turning back and walking towards the bathroom.

Keith chuckled to himself as he went to complete his mission. Just as he went to open the fridge door he caught sight of the small picture that was placed there by a magnet. It was the picture of Rachel, Vivian and Lance from when Vivian had been born.

The picture obviously meant a lot to Lance, especially considering it was the first photo of Vivian and one of the last of his sister.

_Thoughtful._

Keith snapped a photo of the picture on his phone and got a few beers ready for when Lance came back.

When he did return in he gave a great exhale.

“You know,” he started as he began to walk over to the couch where Keith was, “-I love that child. But I think she is most like Rachel when she throws a tantrum. A complete brat.”

The words were a little harsh when you know that directed towards a child but the fondness in his eyes made him know he only had the best intentions at heart when he said that.

Keith held out a beer for him which Lance took gratefully and then plopped himself down across from Keith. He then extended his legs out and put his sock covered feet on Keith’s lap. He then opened his drink and took a long swig that Keith watched in both awe and horror.

“Sometimes I forget that you were a massive party boy until you do that,” Keith teased as Lance wiped the back of his hand over his mouth. He prodded Keith’s arm with his foot, obviously not mad enough to put up a real fight.

“I resent Pidge for telling you my drunken mishaps.”

“I don’t. They’re hilarious.”

“Me being completely blacked out intoxicated and falling into the water fountain is not ‘hilarious’. I could’ve actually died. And honestly, most of it wasn’t even _my_ fault. If I was a party animal, that made Rachel the party _goddess_.” He laughed before taking another long drink. “That bitch was wild. Partied twice as hard and went out twice as much as I did.”

And for a second Keith saw Lance smile. It’s like he’d completely forgotten for just that one moment that Rachel was gone. That serenity didn’t last long though.

“Obviously that all had to stop though when she got pregnant.”

He went silent for a moment and then physically shook his head to shake himself out of his mind going down that dark path. He looked up at Keith, _really_ looked him in the eyes and smiled.

“I mean, I’m sure you did plenty of wild things when you were in college.”

Of course Keith did. Him, Allura and Romelle would go crazy.

Not that Lance needed to hear those details.

Keith laid back and put his arms out on top of the couch. “Nope.”

Lance nudged his foot into Keith’s chest. “Liar.”

He grabbed his boyfriend’s foot and yanked it. Lance yelped and held his arm up in the air so his drink wouldn’t spill as Keith dragged him to his end of the couch.

From that it was pretty much a royal battle to the death that in reality was wrestling to kissing battle and by the end Keith had spilled half his beer over his shirt and they were doing more laughing and kissing.

“Shhh, shhhh,” Keith whispered against his lips. “You’ll wake up Vivian.”

“It’s your fault,” Lance reminded him and grabbed the back of Keith’s neck to put them in for another kiss.

It was weird to think how nervous he had been for their first kiss and comparing it to this one. He was so much more comfortable and content, in fact he’d never felt this comfortable in any previous relationship.

His boyfriend seemed to be just as comfortable as he hummed happily. When he pulled back with a soft ‘smeck’ of their lips leaving one another he then bumped their noses together. “I wish you could stay the night.”

Keith played with Lance’s hair. “I’m sorry.”

Lance squeezed his cheeks together. “Don’t be. You have your fur baby to look after.”

He had felt particularly bad lately not spending as much time with Cosmo as he used to. They still had a daily walk and he got two meals but Keith still felt like he should be spending a little more time with him.

But on the other hand they spent a lot of time at Lance’s apartment due to the fact that everything he needed for Vivian would be there. If he could, he would invite Lance over for the night but he didn’t have anywhere for Vivian to sleep when it came to cots and stuff. And he certainly wasn’t allowed to bring his huge dog inside the apartment complex. Lance wasn’t even allowed to have a fish, let alone a huge dog.

Though, Lance did mention when they upgrade Vivian from cot to bed that it would be easier for them to have ‘sleepovers’ as he put it.

“But can I ask you one thing?” Lance asked, looking a little nervous, bending his posture slightly to put a little distance between them.

“Ask me anything you want.”

He smiled. “I was _hoping_ after I spend the day with my family for my birthday you could come over for the night. Just you me and Vivian hang out. Then we can go wherever you had planned the party.”

“That sounds really nice. Come here,” he said, opening his arms as an invitation. Lance grinned and flung himself into the space, tucking his face into Keith’s neck, nose snug in the fabric of his hoodie.

“Thanks Keith, it means a lot to me.”

He gave him a squeeze, trying to decipher in his mind how much it really meant.

* * *

The day of Lance’s birthday crept up onto him all week. Even though Keith had sent him a good morning happy birthday message, he was excited to be able to say it to him in person.

Lance had spent the morning and afternoon with his family, going to breakfast and then visiting Rachel‘s grave before then hanging out the back at Lance’s parent’s place.

After that it was Keith’s turn for his time with the birthday boy. He got to have dinner and spend the night. It also gave him a chance to give Lance his present in private without the watchful eyes of the group.

Part of his gift was simple flowers and chocolate (in the form of ice-cream), both things he knew Lance liked with the help of Hunk and Pidge. The other he was a little worried about, it was personal, sentimental, like his two friends suggested, he was just hoping it wasn’t _too_ personal.

If it was bad then he always had the backup of bringing Chinese takeout.

When the door opened both Lance and Vivian were there to greet him. Vivian jumped up on the spot and grinned excitedly at seeing him. Lance wasn’t too different, smiling as well.

“Happy birthday,” Keith said leaning over Vivian (who clung to his leg) so he could give Lance a quick peck in greeting.

Once their quiet moment was over Lance tapped the top of Vivian’s head to gain her attention. “Let Keith go now, sweetie. Why don’t you go show him the new toy Abuela got for you, hmmmm?”

Excitement of the idea made her make a happy noise and then stumble her away towards the living room couch to wherever her new toy was.

Given they had another second alone, Lance leaned in to give him a slightly longer kiss, smiling the whole time. Soft and warm, comfortable and familiar. A kiss for the sake of affection. When he pulled back he looked inside the steaming bag in Keith’s hand. Just like how Vivian’s eyes lit up at the thought of showing him her new toy, Lance’s brightened at seeing food.

“Yes! I’m so keen to down this and - _oh_! Are those flowers?” Keith handed them out for him. “Keeeiittthhhhhh!” He whined and took a big sniff, shoving the peonies into his face. “They smell so good.”

“I also brought ice cream.”

Lance’s smile grew as he dragged Keith further into his apartment by his hand. “You’re the best boyfriend anyone could ask for. God you’re _so_ getting laid tonight.”

He felt his face go red and mouth open to stammer his response but Vivian cut in, waving a plushie to gain his attention.

“ _Di-o-thor!”_ She said and by looking at the toy he assumed she was saying dinosaur.

“Wow, that’s a cool dinosaur,” he said gently in the tone he always used her with her. Soft, considerate, not to sound sharp or intimidating that was sometimes associated with Keith. She giggled and clutched it to her chest.

“Come on. Let’s go put the I-C-E-C-R-E-A-M in the freezer and eat!” As they walked over Lance whispered close to his ear. “Ain’t no way in hell I am letting that kid eat _that_ at this time _._ She would go on a sugar hype and I never get her to chill out. We can eat it when she goes to bed.”

Once the ice cream was carefully hidden in the depths of the freezer they ate dinner and talked about their week, but mostly about Lance’s day.

“It was nice, I haven’t seen Luis and my niece and nephew in a while. It was still… Hard though. Especially at her grave.” He sighed, leaning back further into the couch. “I don’t think that's ever going to get much easier.”

Keith understood exactly what he meant when Lance said that. He too, sometimes struggled going back to his father‘s grave.

“But brunch was okay, and I could really tell my family were trying to make it a nice day for me, which meant a lot. It’s just not the same without her, I guess.” Hey trailed off for a moment and grabbed Keith’s hand before smiling. “I’m really happy you’re here though.”

Keith squeezed his hand back and the gesture was recognised.

He was happy to be there with him as well.

* * *

After they put Vivian to bed they decided to bring out the ice cream and put a movie on (that wasn’t of the children calibre). It was nice to just have some quiet time together, cuddled up on the couch with Lance putting his fingers through Keith’s hair and the occasional lazy kiss or soft laughter from either the movie or their commentary on it.

When that was over it was time for them to go to bed. Brushing their teeth and tip-toeing around so they wouldn’t wake Vivian. It wasn’t until they were comfy under the covers that Keith realised he hadn’t given Lance his final gift.

“Noooo,” Lance whined, pawing at Keith’s arm when he tried to leave. “You’re warm!”

“I just need to get something from my bag.” Lance did put up a fight with a grumble, but ultimately let him go. Moving to grab his bag that was on the floor, he unzipped it and dug his hand in, only pulling out when he felt the rectangular present wrapped in paper.

Lance sat up as Keith walked back over and held out the present for him.

Lance’s mouth opened, looking up at Keith before giving him an amused smile. “Keith, this is naughty. You already brought me flowers, dinner, ice cream and the sweet, sweet gift of your presence. Whatever this is, it’s too much.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” he said, slipping back under the covers with him. “I’m allowed to spoil my boyfriend on his birthday. I don’t even know if you’re sure you’re gonna like it… So, uh, sorry in advance.”

Lance scoffed and flipped the present over in his hands, inspecting it like he was trying to guess what was inside.

“Not going to lie, kinda scared, but I’m sure I’m going to love it.”

There was a very big chance that he was in fact _not_ going to love it and that it was only going to upset him. Hopefully either way he would appreciate the sentiment and not get mad at Keith for overstepping.

Lance was surprisingly careful with taking the paper off. After revealing what was inside it took a few moments for his eyes to adjust to realise what he was looking at.

“Keith…”

He found himself holding his breath because he knew if this didn’t end well he was going to have a crying, sad boyfriend which was literally the worst thing he could do to him on his birthday.

Then he smiled.

“It’s beautiful,” Lance sniffed, then kissed his cheek before looking back at the drawing he had done in a frame. He had taken the picture of Lance with Vivian and Rachel from the fridge as reference and had drawn it. He upped the saturation to make the colours and overall vibe brighter. He’s pretty good at making ambiance with drawings and this one had a cheerful one.

“I wasn’t sure if it was… Too much.”

“No,” he insisted, shaking his head and as he quickly wiped away the tears that had managed to escape. “No, this is perfect.” He turned his head to face Keith again so he could look into his eyes. “You’re perfect.”

Keith wasn’t really sure if he had heard anyone ever say that to him before and look so earnest about it. He didn’t even get the chance to say it back (because it’s nothing closer than the truth) before the other continued speaking.

“These are happy tears by the way,” he added as he looked back down at the drawing. “It’s stunning. I’m keeping this forever. Thank you.” He tilted Keith’s head by the chin so he could kiss him at a comfortable angle. It started out as a bold movement, strong pressure like he was trying to force his emotions out. It developed, changed, softened, both sweet and a little salty from the tears.

Keith used the sleeves on his jumper to dry Lance’s cheeks. Lance smiled as he did this and when he was finished went right back to kissing him.

“Happy birthday,” Keith whispered against his lips and in between soft touches.

Even in the dim room, the only light being the lamp on Lance’s bedside table, he could still see the brightness on his boyfriend’s face. From his eyes and smile that had Keith positively gooey.

“Thanks for brightening my day,” he said back before diving his mouth back to where it belonged; against Keith’s.

* * *

“Oh look,” Adam chuckled, eyes drifting downwards. “It looks like you’ve got a shadow, Keith.”

Keith scrunched up his nose and then followed Adam’s line of vision until he reached Vivian who was quietly sitting by his feet. He smiled fondly and gave her a little wave to show that she had his attention.

“Ki,” she said as she tried to get herself to her feet by putting her hands flat on the ground as she lifted her butt in the air and then raised herself upright. When she completed her task her hands went up to him.

Keith had been quick to learn that that action meant she wanted to be picked up, so he didn’t complain as he lifted her and put her on his hip.

For Lance's birthday she was dressed in striped leggings and a blue jumper with the little yellow bird on. Her hair was half up into little piggy tails on top of her head while the rest of her short hair frame to face. She looked undeniably adorable.

“Hi there Vivan,” Adam grinned. She smiled shyly but hid her face into Keith’s shoulder like she did with Lance when she was feeling a little shy. It was the first time she had done that with him before. _Huh..._

“Yeah, he’s pretty ugly, isn’t he? Keith’s snickered, smiling at his future brother-in-law who glared at him.

“You are mean.”

“No actually, a mean person would never have sorted out a whole party for their boyfriend.”

“You’re on thin ice Keith.”

“Don’t forget that you weren’t the _only_ person that helped!” Pidge exclaimed as she walked into his kitchen.

The party was situated at Keith‘s house. He rarely hosted things because despite having the space, he was still currently renovating the shit out of this place.

It had been his childhood home with his dad. When he died, the house was put up for sale and the money was put into an account for him, only activated when he turned eighteen. It was sheer coincidence that after completing his degree the place was put back on the market. One impulsive decision later he was owning his childhood home. It had been weird at first. So many memories were vivid yet still so distant and far away. Recognisable, but also so different from what he remembered.

But it was a house. A house with no mortgage, a nice backyard for Kosmo and in a nice suburban street.

“Keith!” Hunk shouted as he ran into the room. He had been a little panicked today because he wanted this day to be perfect for his friend. They all did. “Where are the matches? We will probably light the cake soon!”

“Hang on, let me just go find them.” He then moved with Vivian to look through the kitchen drawers. He was a young man living alone, so there weren’t that many kitchen appliances, but lucky there was a matchbox. He grabbed the box set and threw them in the air across to Hunk who grabbed them with a stumble.

“Thanks Keith! We are also probably going to need a knife. Uh… Please don’t throw that one though.”

Keith chuckled which made Vivian giggle along.

To be frank, Keith wasn’t sure how this day was actually going to go. He had been worried it was going to be too much, too overwhelming for Lance to deal with. So far the day had been fun and Lance seemed to be having a good time. It was just like hanging out with their friends every other day.

“Okay, if you can go distract him I can light the candles and get the cake ready!” Hunk announced as he grabbed the knife that Keith supplied. “Keith! We’re putting you and Vivian on distracting duty.”

“Wow, lucky us, huh Vee?” He said to Vivian as they left the kitchen so he could go back to where the others were, most importantly to where Lance was.

Shiro, Matt, Allura, Shay, Romelle and Lance were all laughing and seemingly having a good time when he entered the room. Lance noticed them pretty quickly and sent them a glowing smile.

“Oh look! It’s my two sweetie pies,” he teased as Keith walked over and sat down next to him and his couch.

Lance had obviously been to his house a few times. Sometimes to drop him off after a date or for Vivian to come over and play with Kosmo. He looked so relaxed in this setting. Like he belonged there.

One day he would. Once he fixed this place up, made it all nice and stuff, it would be a good home for both Lance and his daughter.

Vivian was quick to wriggle from Keith’s lap to Lance’s. When she sat down Lance pressed a short kiss to her brown curls. Smiling at the affection she mashed their faces together and squealed in delight.

“Oh she looks so sweet!” Allura swooned. “Her hair looks adorable.”

“Thanks Allura,” Lance said twirling Vivian’s short pigtail around his finger. “As her hair gets longer, the curlier it gets. It’s easier to just to get it out of her face.”

“I feel your pain girl,” Allura said looking at Vivian who giggled and wormed left to right at the attention being on her.

Then the lights were being turned off and Hunk and Pidge exploded into the room holding a large chocolate cake that was lit up with 23 candles. Lance laughed out in surprise huff and covered his mouth with his hand. He watched his friends as they walked over and everyone started to sing happy birthday.

Keith could hear Vivian giggling over the singing as Lance stood her on his knees and waved her arms in the air along with the tune.

There was a moment when he turned in Keith’s direction. His smiled faded for half a moment. Keith recognised that expression on his face. It was the ‘I forgot for a moment she was gone, but now I remember’.

Clicking out of it, he faced back to the cake and continued to move Vivian’s arms to dance as everyone sang. He whispered something into her ear and then he blew out the candles and from the noise leaving Vivian’s mouth he assumed she was trying to do the same thing.

They all clapped and cheered then passed around cake and plates. Romelle offered to feed Vivian her cake which ended up with Vivian feeding herself cake and it going all over her face. Matt cleaned her face, giving Keith a moment to put his arm around Lance’s shoulder.

“You alright?”

He nodded and squished himself into Keith’s side. “Yeah I’m good. Thank you for today, I’m having fun.”

A part of him wanted to sigh relief, the other was stiff with uncertainty.

Lance smiled at his expression and used his thumb to wipe what Keith assumed was cake off his cheek. “You make me happy.”

Keith flushed at the sudden heartfelt moment and finally let go of the breath he was holding onto to respond.

“You being happy makes me happy.”

* * *

The party was starting to dwindle down. Everyone was full on food and cake so they were all just lounging around in Keith’s living room either on the floor, couch or in Pidge’s case, a ratty bean bag. The only one who seemed to have any energy left was Vivian.

“Papa?” Vivian said as she looked up to face Lance who hummed, sounding a little confused.

“What’s up?”

She made a noise that sounded like a mix between frustrated and sad. “Kos?”

“You want to know where Kosmo is?” He asked and Vivian nodded briskly. “I don’t know sunshine, why don’t you ask Keith?”

She turned her head in his direction and looked up at him expectantly.

“Kosmo is outside. Do you want to play with him?”

Her head spun back to Lance who nodded. Copying the action she nodded too, looking up at Keith with big, hopeful eyes. He smiled at the little girl to give her the answer she wanted before getting to his feet and going to open the back door for Kosmo to come inside.

The plan was to keep him outside while they were eating because he knew his dog well enough to know that he would give everyone the sad puppy dog eyes.

As soon as he opened the door Kosmo barrelled through. He heard laughter and high pitch puppy talk from his friends as his dog went around the room to say hello to everybody with a lick and sniff.

He finally stopped at Lance and Vivian and the little girl was just _ecstatic_ , giggling and talking to him in half words and happy squeals. Lance watched them fondly, mouthing a quick ‘ _thank you’_ as he sat down while everyone continued their conversations.

Lance sat close to him, laughing as Kosmo licked all over Vivian’s face, getting the last remains of the cake. Keith could really tell it was genuine happiness and not another facade. It wasn’t an act for their friends so they wouldn’t feel guilty over his despair. He was genuinely having a good time.

Nothing made Keith happier, he found.

* * * 

Vivian was dead asleep to the world when Keith took Lance and her back to their apartment, so getting her in her pyjamas and then the bed was easy. Although, Lance had done it silently and without any help, even when Keith offered.

A couple minutes later Lance exited the nursery and a beeline to him. Again, he didn’t say anything, just put his head into the junction between his neck and shoulder.

“Lance?” Keith called out gently.

“You said,” Lance started, words croaked as he spoke. “You said it was okay to be sad with you. Can I just,” he took a shaky breath, “-can I just be sad for a moment?”

Keith wrapped his arms around Lance’s middle, a simple answer to his question that’s only response was a heart shattering sob escaping Lance’s chest moments later. You could tell it was a painful cry, coming deep down and releasing involuntarily, erupting like it had been waiting.

Keith clung to him tight. Closing his eyes to compose himself as a wrecked sob tore from Lance's throat.

“It’s so fucked,” Lance cried with little breath he had. “I’m celebrating our birthday, h-having fun when she’s not here. That’s twisted. How can I, as her brother be so happy when she’s dead?”

Keith’s hand went to the back of his head, the other around his waist to stablise his balance and keep him upright. He almost felt like dead weight in his arms.

“How fucked is it that I am raising her daughter? It’s so _fucked!_ She should be celebrating her birthday with her. I-I _can’t_!” He was cut off by more of his guttural cries, skipping a breath and making him wheeze.

In an attempt to bring comfort, Keith put his fingers through Lance’s hair. But he knew this sort of pain well, knew how numbing it was despite the feeling like you’re going to explode, burst from the inside because you just can’t handle it.

“I don’t know what to do because one part of me is so happy. I’m so happy with Vivian and you-” he choked on his cries, gripping onto Keith’s clothes, nails digging in like he was scared of him running away. “But I am so sad. I miss her so much. I miss her so fucking much. She’s- I just can’t-” More hiccuped sobs and harsh breaths escaped him. It sounded painful even to get the words out, to express them as his tears shook his whole body.

“She would want you to be happy,” Keith said, gently smoothing down his hair.

“Then why do I feel so _guilty?”_ He asked. “I feel like I’ve stolen her life. Have stolen what was supposed to be hers. I’m not Vivian’s father and I’m never going to be so I don’t know why I try so fucking hard. She’s not supposed to be my kid. She’s not mine.”

“Hey,” Keith pushed him back by the shoulders so he could talk directly into his wet, red eyes. “You may not be biologically her father, but that doesn’t mean shit. Whoever he is, her biological father, he has nothing on you. _You_ stayed with her. _You_ are the one raising her. _You_ are the person she relies on most in the world. _You_ are her everything and Rachel would be so proud of you Lance. You’re giving her a great life that she would have wanted for Vivian. That’s why she left her with you, because she knew you could do it. You _are_ doing it. I see it every day.”

Lance blinked up at him with his wet, tear filled eyes caused by absolute heartbreak. He could recognise the fear, confusion, the feeling of being so completely lost, like he was looking at a mirror of his younger self.

Keith pulled Lance back against his chest and held on tight. It was the kind of hug he had wished he had gotten when his father died. It was the hug he always wanted when he felt like falling apart and the world was shit. Shiro was probably the first person to give him that type of hug.

A surge of gratitude filled him knowing he was able to provide a hug that felt like glue keeping someone together. Especially when it was for someone who he loved. It was in that moment, with Lance sobbing into his chest that Keith realised he only wanted to make Lance happy. To make him feel safe and loved because he now knew how far in he was for Lance.

Lance squeezed him back and continued to make his shirt soggy.

Keith hated to see the person he loved in so much pain.

Oh.

_Love._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is sad because lance is sad and that's just S A D  
> I hope i did a job enough job with that last scene it's the first proper time you see lance's grief ;-;
> 
> BUT ALSO AGAIN IF YOU HAVE KLANCEY SONG SUGGESTIONS OR *cough cough* stillbeinginlovewithyourex songs then fucking HIT ME WITH THEM LIKE JUST FUCK ME UP I HAVE A NEW FIC IDEA OK


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we back, survivin corona and shit   
> hope you all are healthy and safe as well as your family but like you don't wanna hear more about that shit from me you want klance so lets fucking go
> 
> tysm to all those people who send me songs! (i'm still going through them and having a listen to them all)

“Thanks for looking after Kosmo for me,” Keith said, rubbing the soft spot behind his dog’s ear. Seeing him right in front of him now made him realise how much he had missed his companion.

“It’s no problem, Keith. Adam and I love Kosmo,” Shiro insisted as he sat down at Keith’s crappy excuse of a dining table. “How is he anyway?”

After Lance’s rough patch after his birthday Keith found it impossible to leave. It didn’t sit right with him leaving his boyfriend in that state. He ended up staying half the week and had only gotten home this afternoon after he finished work. His house was still littered with shit from the party.

“He’s doing better. I think it all just kind of hit him all at once. We discussed for him to go talk to someone, I think he’s going to go ahead with it. I hope so, it’ll be good for him.”

“Yeah, I think that’s smart,” Shiro said before he sighed and shook his head. “Poor kid. It’s not fair.”

An angstier, younger Keith would’ve scoffed and said something along the lines of ‘what do you expect, life isn’t fair,’ because sure, it wasn’t fair, but it still didn’t mean it sucked any less.

High school Keith just didn’t have any sympathy or fucks to give.

Keith now is a very different man when it came to the right person.

“It’s lucky he has you though.”

Keith lifted his head. “Me?”

“Keith, you stayed with him for almost a whole week to make sure he was alright, I’m sure he appreciated that.”

“I’m not very good at comforting people though.”

“You still stuck by him. Sometimes, having someone there is all you need. You have experience with that kind of pain. It’s hard to lose someone so close to you.”

Instinctively, Keith touched his side, where his koi fish tattoo was hidden under his shirt.

“Keith?” The two men both turned their heads to see Krolia walk into the room. She was decked out in her work clothes, which is what she tended to wear most of the time these days. Workaholic. “Oh good you’re home. I didn’t know if you were here or not because you didn’t answer the door.”

“The doorbell is broken,” he explained.

It wasn’t uncommon for Krolia to come in unannounced. She was a busy woman, career driven and passionate about her work. If it weren’t for Keith she would probably allow it to be her entire life. Her career meant a lot for her, being one part of the reason she chose not to be a part of Keith’s upbringing. Now, he got the vibe it was more of a distraction. It didn’t matter though, he always happy to see her, despite their rocky history.

“You should fix that,” she said she placed her bag on the kitchen bench and began to pour water in the kettle.

“I’ve been planning to,” Keith grumbled. He wasn’t sure if he was in the mood for her nitpicking today. He loved her, in their own weird way, but he was exhausted.

“Hi Krolia,” Shiro waved and smiled politely like the perfect best friend he was.

“Hello Shiro. How are the wedding preparations going?” She asked.

“Slow but steady.”

“That’s good to hear.” She walked back over and placed the mug of green tea in front of Keith.

“I didn’t ask for-”

“It doesn’t matter if you asked for it or not. You need this more than I do. You look sickly.”

“I’m not sick,” he muttered. “Just tired.”

“Why are you so tired? Have you been overworking yourself again?”

“No I just-”

“He’s probably tired from all that babysitting,” Shiro teased but it just made Keith flinch and Krolia arch her brow in confusion.

“Babysitting?”

Shit.

He hadn’t intentionally _not_ told Krolia about Lance. At first he wanted to keep it cool, especially when he wasn’t sure if they were going to last. But then after the first two months every other opportunity was taken away from him or just didn’t seem right. There was also the huge factor he had no idea about what she was going to think of their whole situation in general.

And don’t get him started on Vivian, because it was pretty apparent to Keith that Krolia wasn’t a fan of children.

“Oh…” Shiro trailed off, looking interchangeably between Keith and Krolia once he realised his mistake.

“Are you not sound financially?” Krolia asked, making Keith groan. “Are you having to babysit to pay all of your bills? I knew you shouldn’t have started renovating. It’s such a big commitment and costs a lot of money.”

“What? _No._ ” She’s always been weird about him living here. Even weirder about him doing it up.

“Then why are you babysitting?”

“Uh…” He guessed it was now or never. “No, I have a boyfriend.”

Krolia narrowed her eyes. “Well yes, I had guessed that much. You’re just like your father in that regard, no subtlety.” Keith glared at Shiro who snickered behind his hand and tried to cover it with a cough. “But what has that got to do with babysitting… Oh Keith, you’re not dating a _minor_ , are you?”

“No! What the heck?” He seethed while Shiro choked on his laughter. “No, my boyfriend-”

“Name?”

“Lance.”

“Full name?”

Keith rolled his eyes. “Lance McClain. I was with him and his,” he couldn’t help but hesitate and brace himself. “His kid.”

He could tell that it took her by surprise. That didn’t tend to happen much.

“He’s older than you, then?” She asked.

“No. He’s 23.”

Her face twisted a little more and _there it was_. The not understanding bit. The part where his mother didn’t get why someone so young could have that type of responsibility. Would _want_ that.

“And you’re alright with that? That’s a lot of responsibility for a child that isn’t yours.”

She didn’t mean it with any malicious intent, she herself just found it hard to understand, to comprehend living that type of lifestyle. It didn’t stop his eye from twitching.

“I care for them both. A lot.” It’s the truth and Krolia gave a touch of a nod, taking it in but still trying to process.

“Well… I’m happy for you.” He could tell at least half of her words were sincere. “I wish you would have told me earlier, but all is done now. What is he like?”

“He’s very lovely! Too nice for Keith,” Shiro teased, smiling mischievously around Keith's cold stare.

“That’s nice,” she said. He can tell she’s trying, but was obviously struggling to know what to say. “How old is the child?”

“She’s nearly a year and a half.” He opened his phone and showed his screen which was a photo of the three of them both at a park date they had last month. Vivian was on Lance’s lap and they were both smiling, they looked eerily similar.

Krolia and nodded as she inspected the picture. “He’s handsome, he looks a lot like his daughter.”

“Yep,” he said, putting his phone away. There was no point in bothering telling her about Rachel yet. It would just confuse her even further.

“She’s a sweet kid,” Shiro said, trying to lighten up the mood. “And she absolutely _loves_ Keith!”

“That’s… Lovely.”

That pause gave everything away.

It was obvious her worries were growing which pissed Keith off. It was the exact reason why he hadn’t told her yet. He knew she was going to have reservations about him dating a man with a child.

“Yep,” Keith said bluntly. Sharp and to the fact.

Even though he and Krolia had been rebuilding their relationship for the past couple of years, there were still moments where Keith was refuelled with all his past anger, leading him to feel that buried resentment.

He loved her, it was complicated at times but really deep down he loved her. And maybe if she had grown up in his life she might have some say in who he dated. But she wasn’t there, so she had absolutely no say in who he was with.

She knew that. She knew that very well, which is why she hadn’t said anything else even though she was probably dying to.

“So…” Shiro rolled out. “Would you like to see the venue that we have chosen for the wedding?”

There goes Shiro, saving the day once again.

* * *

“Hi!”

Was now Vivian’s new favourite word.

She toddled in front of them as Lance and Keith crossed off each item they had on their list. His daughter couldn’t care less about the grocery shopping though, all her mind is focused on is saying hi to every person walking by.

“Hi!” She smiled as she waved to a man walking past. He seemed surprised at first but didn’t hesitate to wave back with an amused face.

“Do you have the meat?” Keith asked, frowning at the list.

“Not yet!”

He was making Keith dinner tonight to make up for the fact that he had inconvenienced him last week, making him stay for five days at his apartment. Well, he didn’t _make_ Keith stay. But obviously he looked shit enough that Keith felt compelled to not leave. Either way he had messed up his schedule, so now he was making Keith tacos to make up for it. Plus, Lance really loved tacos, so really it was a win-win situation.

“Hi,” Vivian smiled up to a young woman, probably close to Keith’s age and holding a bottle of champagne, box hair dye and hair cutting scissors. She looked like she was close to the verge of tears but even she couldn’t help but grin at the toddler waving at her. She sent a smile to Lance as if to thank him for the precious interaction and he politely smiled back.

He was kicked out of that moment until he realised they weren’t going in the right direction.

“Vivian,” he called out to her to gain her attention. She took a few more steps forward before looking over her shoulder and noticing that they were moving a different way. She trotted over and then began walking in front of both of them again.

“She’s in a good mood today,” Keith mused as they watched her begin to run in her uncoordinated and childlike way, almost tripping over her own feet as she went.

“I told her she was going to be able to play with Kosmo and you today and she’s been on cloud nine ever since,” Lance said which made Keith smile a little to himself.

“I think she started to only like me through association with Kosmo.”

“Honestly, I think _I’m_ only starting to like you through association with Kosmo,” Lance joked, making them both laugh and Keith give him a playful push of the shoulder before they moved back in close to one another like magnets.

“Papa!” Vivian called out to him, gaining both of their attention to look down at them. She held a bottle of sauce out, obviously she had just grabbed it from the bottom shelf.

“Vivian we do not use that in our house. That’s got no kick to it sweetheart,” he grabbed the spicier, better quality sauce that was far out of her reach. He showed her the bottle he had picked out. “This is the hot sauce we use, not that white people's excuse of spice.”

Vivian blinked, obviously trying to process everything her father has said even though she probably didn’t understand half of it. She nodded anyway.

“Good girl,” Lance praised. As she turned to put it back little, uncoordinated hands managed to tip the rest of the jars like dominos.

“Oops!”

That’s another word that Vivian really likes.

Keith knelt down immediately and began to help her restock them, helping her to get them stand up straight and in line, giving her a little high five when she did it correctly.

It was moments like that made Lance so happy that he gave Keith a chance. That Lance gave himself a chance to find love because by god had he found it.

...

_Hang on._

Wait a _damn_ minute, had he just used _the L word_ in his brain?

Oh _shit-_

“We still need the salsa,” Keith said as they began to walk again. “Which one do you want?”

If Lance wasn’t so shocked by that question he would not have gotten over the revelation that he just realised he had just put Keith and love into the same category.

“Are you asking me what _jar_ we use?”

Keith looked scared by his tone. “… Yes?”

Lance blanched. “I make my own salsa! We don’t use store brought crap either. Next thing I know you’re going to be suggesting we get the guacamole from here as well!”

He watched Keith stay quiet.

“Do you… Do you buy store bought guacamole?”

Keith’s lack of response was as much as an answer as any.

“I cannot- just _-wow_! I am almost offended. Salsa I can kind of understand. But guacamole? If my mama knew you brought store guacamole she might revoke your boyfriend approval stamp.”

Keith rolled his eyes and stood up straight. “You’re such a drama queen.”

 _“Nah uh!_ This is just law!”

“It’s illegal to buy store bought guacamole?”

_“Yes!”_

Keith huffed and then continued to walk. “Drama queen,” he murmured under his breath as he continued, the slightest curve of his lip proving he was teasing Lance.

“Well let’s just see what you think when I make my own guacamole and you see how superior it is whatever crap you buy!”

Keith sped up his pace and scooped Vivian up in his arms, making her squeal as they ran down the shopping aisle.

“Keith! Did you just- _get back here!”_

* * *

Later, he really wished that he hadn’t been so focused on the guacamole and chasing Keith with Vivian that he forgot half of the ingredients he needed to make dinner.

“Are you sure?” Lance asked as Keith grabbed his keys. “I’m sure we can just make do with what we’ve got.”

“Nah, it’s fine. It’ll take me five minutes to get to the shops. I’ll probably be back in 20 minutes.”

“Still,” Lance pouted. He was feeling pretty guilty about wasting Keith’s time.

“Don’t worry about it. You can get started and I’ll be back before you know it.” He opened the door and walked over to his living room rug where Vivian was playing with Kosmo. “Make sure your papa doesn’t burn my house down Vee.”

Neither of them bothered to answer him, both too immersed in one another’s company. Vivian giggled as Kosmo’s tail wagged as he licked her cheeks.

Keith looked back to him. “Well I’ll be off then, be back soon.”

“Okay, bye!” _I love you._

Keith smiled and closed the door behind him.

Lance sighed, now left with his own thoughts. As he began to cut and prep the food it was easy to let his mind wander to things that had been bothering him. Rachel was usually the top thing on that list, but this time it was his feelings towards Keith.

It kind of makes sense. Keith had been so perfect these past couple of months, especially the past week. He was probably the only person who was keeping him sane other than Vivian. With him, Lance felt that he was allowed to grieve. Keith was a safe place, warm and caring. Those factors were probably something that Lance had never really had a lot of before when it came to boyfriends or girlfriends. How could he _not_ fall in love with Keith?

But just because it made sense didn’t mean that it wasn’t terrifying. The speed of it all was probably the most daunting thing. They’ve been boyfriends for five months, dated for two and only knew each other for a month beforehand. Eight months ago Lance didn’t even know who Keith was or that he existed.

It was too fast, but that’s how Lance’s heart always took things. He fell hard and fast and then would be heartbroken at the end of it when the other person didn’t feel the same.

This was different though, at least that’s what he kept telling himself. Keith was different. Lance’s feelings towards him were so _different_. That was why he hadn’t said it the second he realised. What he had with Keith was special and he didn’t want to make it more complicated than it already was by throwing in _that_.

Maybe for the first time in his life he would wait for somebody else to say ‘I love you’ first.

The thought of Keith saying that to him put a small smile on his face as he began to spice the meat.

He went into the zone of cooking until he was snapped out of it by the sound of the front door opening and closing.

“Wow, you weren’t lying. You are really quick to-” he looked up at the moment to see a tall woman standing in the middle of the room. She looked as surprised to see him there as he was her. Her eyes wide and her stance still. It wasn’t until Lance looked at her- and he meant _really_ looked at her- to notice the very distinct similarities in her face to Keith’s.

Oh shit, was this Keith’s birth mother?

“Uh, hello…” He trailed off, unsure of quite what to say. To be perfectly honest, he knew nothing about this woman other than the fact that she had left Keith and came back when he was 19. Keith always described their relationship as ‘he loved her and they got along, but it was complicated’, but obviously not complicated enough that she felt the need to knock on the door or plan her visit beforehand.

“You must be Lance,” she said warmly, a small smile on her face. “I’m not sure if Keith mentioned me, but I’m Krolia.”

So Keith _had_ spoken about him to her, for some reason that made him smile.

“I am!” He quickly wiped his hands before walking around the kitchen bench so he could extend a hand to her. “Keith told me about you too! It’s nice to finally meet you!”

She smiled. It was a very small smile, only a toggle of the lips, but it was enough.

“Are you joining us for dinner? I come from a big family so that means big meals. I’ve been trained to make more food than I actually need, so we have plenty!”

He felt so excited, bouncing on his toes and talking at a higher pitch than usual. He’s been wanting to meet this woman for so long because he was important to Keith in a weird way. But nonetheless still important.

All in all, despite everything, she was still his biological mother. Of course Lance wanted to impress her.

“Oh… I’ll ask Keith first,” she said with a polite smile. It was a little forced, maybe she was just uncomfortable with new people like Keith.

“Of course! Feel free to take a seat and--” A happy squeal of delight cut Lance off and made Krolia flinch, obviously not expecting the noise. They turned their heads in the direction of where Vivian was playing Kosmo on the ground. “Baby, try not to scream so loud. You don’t want to hurt Kosmo’s ears, do you?” He called out to her and she shook her head. “Give him a pat and say _sorry Kos!”_

Vivian gave the dog and gave him a few pats to the head and repeating the words he had told her to say (in her own, jumbled way).

“And that is Vivi, she’s my daughter.” He hoped that if Keith had told his mother about him he had also mentioned Vivian in the midst of it.

“Yes, Keith did show me a photo. She’s bigger though.” She seemed curious, mystified by the secrets of growing children.

“Yeah, they grow super fast.” He was a hair strand away from adding _‘as you would know, being a mother and all._ ’ He was glad that he picked up that mistake before saying it out loud.

“Would you like some help?” She asked, eyes off the ingredients he was working with.

“I’m fine thanks! I’ve almost prepared everything anyway. Feel free to take a seat.”

She hummed, taking up his offer and sitting down at the dining room which still gave her access to speak to him from the kitchen.

He wondered why she wouldn’t have sat on the couch when he realised that she might not be comfortable around children. Was that a terrible assumption to make?

Silence made Lance panic in an attempt to figure out something he could say.

“Keith is at the store by the way, we forgot some ingredients so he’s gone to go get them. He shouldn’t be too much longer. I’m cooking tacos by the way. I hope you like that. I feel like you’re probably a really good cook. Keith cooked a recipe you taught him a while ago and it was incredible.”

_What a way to feel the silence with nervous rambling. Geez Lance, cool down a bit before you make a fool of yourself._

Her little smile was back.

“That sounds delicious Lance, thank you. I’m glad you liked the recipe. Was it bulgogi?”

Maybe he was finally getting somewhere.

“Yes, I’m _pretty_ sure that was it. Amazing, honestly.”

“It is quite a crowd pleaser. I used to make it – oh, uh... hello.” Lance turned around to see why she had stopped speaking. Vivian peered at Krolia between the cracks in the back of one of the dining chairs.

“Vivian.” At the sound of his voice she turned to him. “Don’t stare, it’s rude, Sweetpea.” As he spoke, Vivian looked from him to Krolia, like she was peeved that her father had spoiled her hiding spot to watch the unfamiliar guest. Now shy at being caught she began to walk over to Lance, arms in the air to keep her balance, a small whine in her voice. Once she reached him, she grabbed onto his leg and stuck there like glue.

His eyes went back up to Krolia. “Sorry about that. She’s probably tired. She’s been going a little crazy today because she was excited to see Keith and Kosmo.”

“I see,” she said simply.

“But I cannot let you go to sleep now, can I?” He said, looking down at Vivian who still hugged his leg. “If I let you go to sleep now you’re gonna be bouncing off the walls all night. Come here.” He picked her up, putting her on his hip as he stirred the salsa. “There we go sweetness,” he said and pressed a kiss to her temple. He then proceeded to bop around a little, trying to wake her up and get her excited again so she could make it through dinner. She would be able to sleep on the ride home, if she slept now he was going to be up with her for the majority of the night.

She laughed a little at the movement, mirroring Lance’s wide smile.

“There it is! Look at that smile,” he said swaying her left or right. He looked back to Krolia who watched them. “Oh, I never asked if you wanted something to drink? I have no idea what Keith has though. He didn’t have any butter before today. Sometimes I don’t know how he’s lasted this long.”

“I’m fine for a drink, thank you. That does sound like Keith. His doorbell has been broken for three weeks now.”

“I should force my brother to come and fix it. He’s an electrician.” Lance paused as he thought over that statement. “Do you electricians fix door bells? I don’t know how that stuff works, that’s why I work at an aquarium.”

“That sounds interesting.” She had leaned forward as she had spoken, genuinely intrigued. Lance preened.

“I love it there. I’ve been working there since I was a teenager. But since I’ve graduated with my Marine biology degree I’ll be able to get more opportunities.”

“Marine biology, that sounds difficult.”

“Yup. It was pretty full on.” And it had zapped him of all the joy and relaxation from his life. “I’m just lucky I graduated before Vivian came into my care, otherwise I doubt I would’ve been able to do it all.”

She nodded. “It’s admirable that you’re able to raise such a young child yet still have a formidable career. I’m sure your parents are very proud of you.”

Lance’s ears burned at the compliment. He wasn’t quite sure how we felt about it. The way she spoke made it feel very… Formal. Like this was a business meeting and he was an underling being praised by the boss. Either way, it still felt nice to think maybe Keith’s mother liked him.

As that thought process went through Lance’s head, Keith reentered the room with the missing ingredients. His stance straightened and as he spotted his mother.

“Mum? What are you- what are you doing here?”

“I was in the neighbourhood and wanted to visit. I wasn’t aware that you had company.”

Keith‘s mouth opened to say something but ended with him just closing it and giving a firm nod. “Right.”

“She’s staying for dinner by the way!” Lance cut in. They had a silent conversation through the eyes that had Lance saying ‘don’t you dare send her away, she’s staying’ as Keith responded ‘really now?’.

“Kiki!” Vivian called out, extending her arms and wriggled out of Lance’s grip. With a huff, Lance put her to the ground and let her go over to Keith who was trying to suppress a smile (and failing horribly).

“Hey Vee,” he said as he leaned down to pick her up and hold her with one arm and the missing ingredients in the other (which was honestly too hot for the situation. Time and place Lance, time and place) He walked over to Lance and placed the bag on the bench. “Does she need to be fed soon? I’m surprised she hasn’t thrown a tantrum yet.”

"Oh she’s holding it in. I can see it in her eyes.” Lance said, pushing forward a bowl of tomatoes, avocado and lightly spiced mince that they were using for the tacos. “Can you feed her for me? Now that we’ve got all the things we need, I'll probably have this all finished in 15 minutes.”

“Sweet. Come on Vee, let’s go sit.”

He watched Krolia observe Keith as he fed Vivian with fascination. Right down from putting her bib on to feeding her each mouthful and sweeping up the bits she dropped.

It reminded Lance of Keith when he first met Vivian.

Lance smiled and turned down the heat of the stove.

* * *

Keith passed over Vivian who had passed the fuck out and was in a deep sleep. Lance took her carefully and then without any problem, put her in her car seat.

“I’m not sure when I’m going to be able to see you next. There are going to be a heap of school trips to the aquarium this week so we’re gonna be pretty flat out.”

“That’s fine, we will manage something.”

Lance smiled gently, the kind of softness that showed his gratitude. Keith felt like he hadn’t done anything to deserve that adorable smile.

“Okay then. Now that we’re not under the watchful eyes of Krolia you need to give me a kiss so I can be sated till I see you next.” His words were accompanied by a devious smirk and half lidded eyes that he knew Keith wouldn’t deny.

Keith pulled Lance in by the waist and let him grab his face to kiss.

As much as he loved hanging out with both Lance _and_ Vivian, it was nice to just have these quiet moments with his boyfriend. Just kissing and holding him around the middle and maybe even sneak in a little bit of tongue to make Lance give that heady hum of approval.

Retracting too soon in Keith’s opinion, they pulled away from each other. If it weren’t for the fact his mother was right inside and Vivian was sleeping in the car he probably just would’ve taken him back inside. Unluckily for them it wasn’t that simple.

Obviously Keith wasn’t the only feeling the reluctance too, since Lance was pouting as they pulled away from another.

“I should get the little one home.”

“Probably,” but not without giving him one more soft kiss. It did its intended job as Lance’s lips quirked up at the corners. He was about to turn to leave when a niggling question came forth. “Hey,” he said, getting his attention. “Krolia didn’t say anything weird to you, did she? She can be a little blunt sometimes and I’m just hoping she didn’t say anything to make you uncomfortable.”

Lance's confused expression was a good indication of what his answer was gonna be. “No, she was perfectly lovely.” He elbowed his ribs with a sneaky smirk. “I think she might even like me.”

Keith wasn’t sure how he felt about the unlikely statement as he watched Lance drive away down the street. He might as well get some answers for him. And himself.

“You really should start calling before you decide to come firing into my house,” Keith grumped as he walked back into the living room and planted himself on the couch. He let his feet up. It had been a long day.

“If that’s what you wish I’ll do it. But you really do need to get your doorbell fixed.”

He hummed, now not sure what to say next because there was an elephant in the room. Something that neither of them want to ask the other about. Keith’s stubbornness won out against Krolia’s because she was the first to speak next.

“Lance is very sweet,” she said simply. Like she was stating a fact that was common knowledge to everyone. “He’s driven as well. I like that. It’s admirable even. Being a single dad and working towards a career. It would be very challenging.”

The resentful part of his brain wanted to tell her that was difficult. Immensely so. That he knew that because he had to watch his father’s struggle for years until he died. The forgiving part let it go.

“I like him. He’s a hard worker and has lots of passion too,” she added.

If there was one trait his mother loved more than anything else it was drive. The drive to accomplish, to follow dreams and succeed.

She saw that and Lance and respected it.

“I still don’t know how I feel about you dating someone with a child. I don’t want you to miss opportunities that come your way because of it. You’re talented at what you do, Keith.”

Of course she would think that. To her, a career was everything.

“But,” she started again making him lift his head. “I was surprised tonight at how well you were with her.”

“ _Her_ name is Vivian.”

Krolia nodded. “At how well you were with Vivian,” she corrected. “You smile a lot with them. I know you think I’m unreasonable with you on this topic, but I just want you to be happy. Those two make you happy, so I think you make a lovely couple.”

Keith looked at Krolia, his mother and saw her with a smile. Soft, encouraging and content all rolled into one.

“They make me really happy.”

She nodded in agreement. “And that makes me really happy.”

Keith couldn’t help but grin. He didn’t need his mother’s approval. He wasn’t asking for it, but it sure felt good to have it.

“Is… is the mother around? Have you met her?” Krolia asked quietly.

“No, she died.” Krolia gave a solemn nod. “She was Lance’s twin sister. She put Lance’s name down if anything was to happen to her. He has older siblings offered to take Vivian, but he wanted to respect her choice.” Keith took a sip of his drink that was on the coffee table. “He’s one of the toughest guys I know.”

Krolia stayed quiet for a moment. “I knew there was a reason he reminded me of your father.”

Keith’s ears pricked up like Kosmo’s did with the rattle of the treat bag. They rarely spoke of his father these days. They had a huge heart to heart about it when Keith first forgave her, but other than that she only ever said small things. Like ‘your father liked those’ or ‘that reminds me of the time me and your father-’ and so on. “Really?”

She nodded. “Yes, lots of perseverance. A big smile.” A smile of her own came fondly to her lips. “I think your father would’ve liked him.”

Keith remembered being a young teenager, realising his sexuality wasn’t one taken lightly. He had known both girls and boys thrown out of their homes for being gay or different. It was lucky for him that Shiro was just as gay as he was and the Shirogane’s were supportive and loving. It made him wonder if his dad would’ve been disappointed if he were alive.

It had been one of the first things he had asked Krolia about his father after their relationship rekindled. Hearing Krolia say he was supportive and accepting of LGBT people had been a good day for him. He remembered going home and crying in his room, knowing that if his dad _was_ somewhere and watching over him he would still love him. Would love that he was in love.

“Yeah,” Keith smiled. “I know he would have.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i cry over sweet domestic klance + vivian if you hear crying in the distance THAT ME BISH


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE READ
> 
> okie so we're getting very close to the end of this fic BUT i am writing more for this series! Things in the future and cute lil moments and stuff like that!!! I don't know when I'll be able to upload them, so if you want to know when i do, you can keep updated on my instagram or tumblr (same @ as here) or you can series subscribe/user subscribe
> 
> I also have updated my stripper lance au on instagram so go have a lookie look!!!
> 
> that's all i have to say so tysm for reading & enjoy the chapter 💕

Keith was cleaning up his supplies after doing a guy’s first tattoo when Allura walked into the room. She was holding the work phone to her ear, laughing and saying something quietly to whoever was on the other side before extending her arm out to Keith.

“It’s your lovely, lovely boyfriend.”

That was weird. Lance never called him from the work phone. He would always message or call Keith on his personal one. Had he missed a message from Lance during his client session?

Keith put the phone ear. “Hey Lance, what’s up?”

“I’ve made a boo-boo,” he said, sounding strained and stressed. “I totally messed up my scheduling for when I finished work and I’m not going to be there on time to pick up Vivi from daycare. Is there a chance you could pick her up for me? I wasn’t sure if you were still working or not so it’s okay if you can’t.”

He could tell by his quick words concession that Lance was stressed about it. Maybe Keith hadn’t been the first one he called. He was running out of options, thus starting to panic.

“Yeah I’m done with clients for the day. It’s too late to be starting any more tattoos anyway so I’m just manning the desk. I can pick her up for you.”

“Are you sure? You don’t have to.”

He hadn’t picked her up before. Actually, he’d never really been alone with her before. Lance had always been there or close by. He was nervous about it, sure, but by now he’s pretty certain he could keep her alive for at least one afternoon until Lance finished his shift.

“Yeah that’s fine. I just need the address.”

He heard a sigh of relief from the other side. “Thanks babe, you saved me from getting a grilling from my boss. I’ll send the address through on text. I’ll also message the daycare centre and let them know you’re picking her up and not kidnapping her.”

“Do I look like a kidnapper?” Keith asked, glancing towards the mirror and wondering if he was going to look too intimidating for a room of 0 to 3-year-olds.

“I don’t know about a kidnapper. Maybe a Lance-napper? You could pick me up at any time. Get a little bit of Stockholm syndrome while I’m at it.”

Keith snorted and rolled his eyes. “You know, you should quit being a marine biologist and have a go at being a comedian.” The sarcasm was golden and obvious.

“Totally should. Too bad the fishes are calling my name.”

“Too bad,” Keith agreed.

Allura waved at him for his attention and mouthed the ‘Vivian’ with hopeful eyes. Keith nodded so she jumped in the air and squealed to herself excitedly.

He rolled his eyes and then looked to the time on his phone.

“I’ll probably have to leave soon to be able to pick Vee up.” From what he knew the daycare was pretty close to his work so he would be able to walk there. Handy considering he didn’t have a car seat for Vivian.

“Also, a little warning before you go. Don’t worry too much about the mothers. They’re either going to be hella thirsty for you, or call the cops and try to arrest you. They are a bunch of suburban Karen’s, like totally soccer mums of the future when their kids can run.”

“I’ll try and remember that one.” He was honestly now a little more worried about the mums eating him alive than children crying at seeing him.

“Again, thank you so much Keith. I really appreciate it. I’ll treat you to dinner tonight at my place to say thank you.” The earnesty in his tone made Keith smile and heart swell.

“It’s fine Lance, but I won’t say no to dinner. Now go back to work. The fish need you.”

“Yeah, yeah okay. I’ll go. If there’s any issues don’t hesitate to call me. I have my phone on me.”

“I think it will be fine. I probably won’t see Vee anyway because Allura is going to steal her.”

Lance laughed softly on the other end but was cut off as somebody spoke to him. It was a female voice with words that he couldn’t decipher.

“Okay I really gotta go. I’ve got a tour coming up and I’m probably going to be late. I’ll see you later. I love you.”

“I love you too, bye.” Pocketing his phone he saw Allura’s eyes widen at him. “What?”

“You,” she said pointing a black painted nail in his direction. “Did _not_ tell me that you had said ‘I love you’ to Lance yet! When did _that_ happen?”

Keith squinted his eyes. “What do you mean? I haven’t said that to him yet. I haven’t found the right time.”

Allura sucked in a breath between her teeth with a cringe. “Keith, you literally just said it on the phone to him.” Keith felt his face freeze and his breath stop.

Thinking back to their conversation just a moment ago he thought back to the end. Lance said it first and then Keith followed back.

“Holy shit,” he said to himself, dumbfounded and his own stupidity.

“Oh boy, you two need to have a chat. A big one.” She watched him groan into his hands in despair. “Why are you so freaked out? It’s not like you didn’t mean it. Plus, you said I love you too, which meant _he_ said it first.”

Keith ran a hand down his face. Sure, maybe he did say it first but Keith wanted to actually make it special for the first time they said it to one another. Particularly face-to-face and not on accident and then immediately hanging up afterwards.

He and Lance were definitely going to need to have a chat.

“I can’t think about this at the moment, I need to go pick up Vee, I'll be back in 20 minutes.”

“This is the best day of work ever!” She sang as Keith walked out of the tattoo parlour, giving himself time to think over what just happened as he went to pick up his boyfriend's daughter.

* * *

_“Shit!”_ Lance shouted and threw the phone as if it had burnt him, onto the floor of the Aquarium’s gift shop.

Nyma stared at him from behind the counter. “Want to explain to me why you just threw your phone up the floor like a-”

“I just accidentally told Keith I love him!” He blurted out in a single breath. He needed all the air that he could get because he felt like his lungs had been stripped of all oxygen. “Like! Literally just said that for the first time on the phone! _On the phone!”_

“Did he say it back is the question?”

“I don’t know! I hung up before I heard his answer!” Lance had been so shocked by his own confession that he had hung up immediately before Keith even got the chance.

“Please tell me you’re kidding.”

“I panicked! What would I do if he said it back?”

“Oh yes,” she deadpanned. “Because having your sexy, tattoo artist boyfriend who cares about you unconditionally telling you he loves you would be _terrible_.”

“What if he didn’t mean though? Like, he just went with or it slipped out accidentally like I like I let it slip out.”

“Do you love him?” She asked. Lance opened his mouth but felt his face overheat and chose to nod his head instead. “Well there you have it. You love him and now he knows.” She paused to think about it. “Also, he probably thinks that you might have accidentally slipped up too. He’s probably just as freaked as you are.”

Lance grabbed one of the stuffed toys from the shelves and screamed into the belly of a hammerhead shark. It muffled the sound enough but still attracted a few concerned eyes in his direction. Instead of wallowing, when he pulled back he put it on his best showman smile.

“I have to go take some tours!” He exclaimed with the fake excitement.

Nyma chuckled. “Oh yikes. You two are definitely going to need to have a talk about your feelings.”

“No feelings talks! Only barnacles and stingray!” He said as he skipped down to his next tour.

He just had to get through today and talk to Keith later.

* * *

Keith as a tattoo artist has met some pretty diverse people. Some were 18-year-old girls getting flower tattoos, some were guys in their 50s in head to toe with black ink. There were some pretty quirky personalities and hard asses.

He’s not quite sure how we felt about this though.

He felt like he was being watched by a pack of hungry vultures as he neared the building with flowers and rainbows painted on the signs, when really it was just a bunch of women in their 30s waiting for their children to come out from daycare.

Approaching a woman wearing a bright pink name tag that said Emily and guessed she was the child carer. “Uh, hello…?”

She turned quickly in his direction and gave him a bright grin as her hands clasped together. “Who do we have here?” She spoke in a high-pitched tone like she was speaking to a child.

“Keith, I’m here for Vivian.”

Her eyes lit up in recognition. “Of course! You must be Lance’s boyfriend! It’s so nice to see you here!”

He smiled politely despite the fact he felt like she was similar to a character on a child's TV show. So energetic to the point that it was worrying. But there was no hint of judgement in her tone, so she couldn’t be all that bad.

“Now the kiddies are just cleaning up after some arts and crafts. She’ll be right out in a jiffy!” She pointed to a small set of chairs where a group of mothers sat. “If you wish you can go sit down and wait! Shall only be a minute or two.” Her smile made the words to say more like a demand than an offer so he went by and stood near the chairs. No way he was sitting, the chairs were small and looked like they would snap under him.

He was looking at the time on his phone when a voice caught his attention.

“We haven’t seen you around here before, are you new to come into this daycare?” A woman with straight brown hair and a kind smile asked. The other women who assumed to be mothers all looked at him.

“Oh… No. I’m picking up my partner’s kid.”

“Aren’t you a good boyfriend!” One of the older women grinned. “Your girlfriend must feel very lucky!” They all had a little giggle between themselves.

“Uh…”

In that same second Emily came out with Vivian in her arms and a few other little kids toddling behind her. Vivan looked a little bit sleepy but as soon as she spotted him her face brightened and her arms extended out.

“Kiki!” She squealed, going into a tangent of laughter as Emily passed her over to him. If she was confused as to why he was here instead of Lance she didn’t seem too bothered by it.

He put her on top of his shoulders, prompting her to hold on top of his head for stablisation.

“Ready to go Vee”? He asked her and she patted his head and made an informative noise. He looked at Emily. “Thank you.”

“Oh, it’s my pleasure sweetie, Vivian is such a sweetheart.” Emily gave Vivian a cutesy wave which Keith couldn’t see whether it was returned or not. “Have a lovely day!”

As he turned with Vivian he caught sight of the mothers giving him a confused, or dumbfounded expression. They must’ve recognised Vivian and put together that he was with Lance, not some girl.

Whatever, now they just had to get Vivian back to the parlour.

He was naive to think that that was going to be the easiest part of the day.

Pointing in the direction of the park as they walked down the street, Vivian made a delighted noise on top of her throne which was Keith‘s shoulders.

“Sorry Vee, we have to go back to my work.”

“No!” She whined.

“Sorry. Maybe later.”

“No,” she repeated, words wobbled which indicated tears.

Keith never had to worry about disciplining her before, especially with tantrums over not getting what she wanted. Usually Lance was there for that so he didn’t have to. He didn’t even know how his boyfriend would react to Keith being stern with her. He might not like it.

“No Vivian,” he said, ignoring her upset whimpers. He got an idea as he walked past a bright pink shop with the sign lollies on it.

Lance had definitely said something about compromising once.

* * *

By the time they reached the parlour Vivian was smiling and giggling with her sweets that would not cause her to choke and die, thus Lance breaking up with him and leading Keith into a deep depression.

Allura must’ve been with a client because she wasn’t there the second the door dinged with indication that someone had arrived. Instead one of the other tattoo artists was there to greet them.

Zach wasn’t really somebody Keith spent a lot of time with. He was covered in naked women and dragons and shit. He was good at his work in a technical sense, but he lacked the empathy with nervous clients. He was more likely to laugh at someone’s anxieties than comfort them.

“Shit? Did you just steal a Mexican child from the streets?” He laughed out loud while Keith scowled.

Zach was a difficult personality to get along with, which was coming from Keith who barely had any friends growing up.

“No, this is my boyfriend's child. Her name is-”

“Your boyfriend?” He asked as Keith grabbed Vivian and lowered her to the ground where she stayed at his feet. “I mean, sure, that kind of makes sense. I’d turn gay too if I got anyone pregnant. Not much risk there anymore is there?” He laughed at his own jokes while Keith took a deep breath, hoping it would dissipate his irritation.

“Watch yourself Zach,” Allura said as she entered the room. Vivian was quick to cross the floor to give her calves a hug. She smiled down at her before looking back up. “Keith _can_ and _will_ beat the living crap out of you.”

Zach scoffed and scratched his scraggly poor attempt of a mustache. “It was just a joke! I mean what does it take to not knock someone up? Boyfriend sounds like he’s got a weak pullout game. Like, have ever heard of a condom? I mean not that you guys probably need them considering-”

“Zach,” Keith snapped. “I don’t care if we work together. Say one more thing about my boyfriend or his kid and I promise you I will beat the shit out of you.”

He put his hands up in surrender and backed away before moving back to his private Tattooing station.

Allura walked over to stroke his shoulder like she was try to calm a wrestled, feral cat that had an intruder in its territory.

“You know he means no harm. He’s just… Trying to be funny and his own weird, racist, homophobic-” she rolled her eyes at herself. “Yeah it’s really hard to defend that. He’s a douchebag. We all know that.”

“I know it’s just…” He looked down at Vivian who was now standing on top of his foot with her arms around his leg. Big blue eyes watched him and grinned before hiding her face into Keith’s jeans, completely unaware of his anger.

“Hey, I get it,” Allura said gently in her smoothing voice. “You’re protective of them. It’s only natural after all they’ve been through.”

He guessed it made sense. It wouldn’t be the first time Keith has threatened to beat the daylights out of someone for messing with the people who he cared about. He could still very clearly remember getting into a fistfight with some random drunk guy for saying some really vile things to Allura and Romelle when they kissed outside a bar.

But that protective urge was much stronger when it came to Lance and Vivian. He wanted nothing more than to just wrap them both up and keep them safe and happy for as long as they would let him.

God, he really needed to talk to Lance.

* * *

“Which one do you want?” He asked Vivian who was flipping through the folder. She sat on his knee at the front desk while he worked through some emails and looked through his requests for designs.

She pointed her finger to the design of a mermaid.

“That one?”

She nodded in confirmation.

“Alright then.” He reached over and dug his hand into the display folder slip and pulled out the pastel mermaid tattoo that had a huge smile and shell bra. “Where do you want it?” He asked as he stood up from his desk and walked to the staff room to where the sink was. He placed her on top of the bench as she thought over the question.

She pointed to her cheek.

“You want it on your face?”

“Yes!” She insisted, bouncing a little on the edge of the counter.

He wasn’t sure how Lance would feel about him giving his daughter a temporary tattoo on her face so… “How about we put it right here,” he suggested, pointing to her shoulder.

She stared at the spot, a little pout of concentration on her face as she thought over the option. After a second of deliberation she nodded.

Keith grabbed the closest hand towel in reach and poured hot water over before pressing it to Vivian’s arm. She giggled and watched with hawk-like curiosity as he held it into place. The expression on her face glowed as he slowly began to peel the top layer off, leaving Vivian’s arm with pinks and blues in the shape of a mermaid.

She squealed with excitement that went into a spill of laughter and excited wiggles.

“Like it?” He asked despite already having a good indication of what her answer was going to be.

“Yeah!” She said, throwing her arms up in a cheer.

“What do we say?”

“Thanks!” Her thank you sounded more like tanks but the sentiment was all there.

He scooped her up into his arms. “That’s okay Vee. Want to go have another look at some more for next time?”

There were a few jumbled words but he understood the last one being, “Papa!”

“That’s a good idea. Do you think he would like a mermaid too?” He asked as he walked back out to the reception area to where Allura was finishing with her client’s payments.

“Fissies!” And pronunciation obviously wasn’t quite there again. But he’s gotten better at understanding what she’s trying to say especially as she got older.

“A fish, huh?” He asked, giving us a polite smile to the two girls who were Allura’s clients. They cooed quietly to themselves as they watched Vivian point to a temporary tattoo of Nemo.

“Did somebody get her first tattoo?” Allura asked with enthused gasp. Vivian giggled as Allura fawned over the mermaid on her arm. “Wow! You and Keith are matching now!”

Vivian laughed and hugged his neck, the three women now swooning over her cuteness.

“She’s gorgeous!” One of the girls said. “What’s your name?”

“Vivian,” Keith supplied because now Vivian is getting a little shy over all the attention, hiding her face into his neck.

“So cute!”

“You should see her dad!” Allura winked at the girls who fell into laughter while Keith rolled his eyes at her. She wasn’t wrong, so he couldn’t really blame her all that much.

Once the girls had paid and Allura had given them another rundown on how to care for their new tattoos she turned to him.

“Speaking of her dad, when is he coming to pick her up?”

“Crap.” He had completely forgotten about Lance and the fact that he was going to be picking her up very soon. That meant he was going to need to talk about what happened on the phone.

“Soon,” he said, putting Vivian down on the reception desk chair where she sat quietly flipping through the tattoo folders. “What should I say?”

“Well you can’t take it back.”

“What If he takes it back? Surely I can take it back if he takes it back!” He whined and watched Allura roll her eyes.

“Stop freaking out. You meant what you said. Even if he didn’t, which I highly doubt by the way, you did. You,” she lowered her voice and tore her glance away from Vivian. “You _love_ Lance. You’re in love with him.”

It was weird to accept it and say it in words. Of course he had been thinking about it for a while, but he just hadn’t said it out loud. Falling in love wasn’t really his thing, love in general had never been his strong point. He was the abandoned orphan who had a temper and could barely stay in one foster home for longer than a month. The only person who truly loved him as a child had been his dad. Then it was Shiro and slowly throughout the years he’s been opening up to people. Pidge, Matt, Adam, Allura, Romelle, his mother, recently Hunk, Shay and of course Lance.

But he’s never been _in_ love before. At least not like this. Not the kind of love where it was overwhelmingly strong and made him feel like he was warm and safe and always at home whenever he was near him.

Being in love with somebody was very different than loving someone. Romantic love was different, no more or less valid and platonic love, but very different.

Meeting Lance had rocked his world and what he believed romantic love was. Lance changed the game and this game was so much better than anything he’d ever played.

“Yeah, I do love him.”

There was no point in denying it even if there was a chance that Lance had only accidentally said it. It was scary to think maybe it wasn’t reciprocated, but he was actually in love with Lance. He deserved to be able to express it and Lance deserved to hear it.

“Well then you better get ready to tell him because I can see him walking down the street.”

Keith’s head turned to see that Lance was in fact making his way down towards the shop, looking a little flustered, like he had been running.

Keith’s confidence seemed to fly out of the door as Lance opened it.

* * *

Lance had practically sprinted from his car down to the parlour. He already felt bad enough that he had asked Keith on such a short notice to pick Vivian up. Hopefully the endorphins from running would help decrease his anxiety because what the _hell_ was he going to do about telling Keith that he was in love with him?

Obviously he meant it, but now he had to go through that awkward moment of hearing the ‘thank you, I really care about you too, but I’m not ready to say that back yet’ speech he had heard way too many times during his life.

That was his problem. Falling too hard and fast that usually the other person couldn’t keep up. That was the whole point of wanting to wait for Keith to say it first. He didn’t want to ruin everything by putting pressure on Keith to say something he didn’t feel. Lance also didn’t want to feel an involuntary resentment towards Keith because he couldn’t say it back.

Before he had left the aquarium Nyma had reminded him that he was allowed to voice out his feelings, talking about love or not love happened heaps in relationships. It was _normal._ Meaning he didn’t have to worry about it as much as his brain was telling him to.

It didn’t stop him from worrying that he might have just messed everything up with Keith.

For a single moment when he opened the tattoo parlour door or his worries vanished at the relief and happiness of seeing Vivian smiling at him from Keith’s lap at the reception desk.

“Papa!” Vivian called out as Keith put her to the ground and she toddled her way over to him.

Maybe Keith didn’t love him quite yet. But he always knew he had Vivian.

The grin that spreads across his face couldn’t be controlled as he lifted her in the air and gave her a few loud kisses on the cheek and forehead.

“Hello sweetness!” He greeted her with another kiss, this one to her nose. “Were you good for Keith?” Her head nodded quickly before she pushed her face into Lance’s chest as she hugged him. Placing his chin on the top of her curly head of hair he looked over to where Allura and Katie were standing by the desk.

“Thank you so much for getting her Keith,” he said as he walked over.

If Keith was freaked out over the phone confession, Lance couldn’t see any evidence of it. The only thing on that stupidly handsome face of his was a small smile.

“It’s fine Lance. We had lots of fun, didn’t we, Vee?” She nodded her head against his chest.

“Yeah, Keith even gave her a tattoo,” Allura said and rolled up Vivian’s sleeve to show the little mermaid that was obviously a temporary tattoo.

“Cute, I’ll have to get a matching one.”

“Actually,” Keith said, holding out a Finding Nemo temporary tattoo. “Vee picked this one out for you.”

“Well thank you very much Vivi.” Lance looked up to Keith. “What do I need to pay you for those?”

Keith rolled his eyes with an amused huff. “Don’t be dumb. I’m not making you pay for that…” he trailed off and walked over to stand by him. “I am hoping you’ll still buy me dinner though.”

Ah shit he forgot about that.

He gulped.

“Ah, yeah of course!” He squeaked, blushing as Keith leaned in and gave him a kiss to the cheek.

“Perfect.”

Lance nodded frantically and smiled up at Keith. He’s _in love_ dammit he can’t help but get trapped into that smile and those eyes like a love sick fool.

“I’ll go and let you finish your shift, I’ll see you at home.”

Keith nodded and leaned in for another kiss - and okay _,_ maybe Keith was happy? He seemed content and not freaking out like he was.

Or maybe he hadn’t heard Lance or had decided for both of their sakes to ignore that it happened.

“Bye.”

“Bye.”

“Bye Lance! Bye Vivian!” Allura cut in. “Feel free to let Keith babysit more often at work! We had fun today, well, other than the Zach situation.”

Lance furrowed his brows. “The Zach situation?” He’s pretty sure that he’s heard Keith talk about Zach before. Wasn’t he one of their co-workers?

“Don’t worry about it,” Keith insisted. “I think she’s about to fall asleep.” The sudden change of conversation and topic confused Lance, but ultimately his worries were switched over to look down at his daughter who was in fact rubbing her eyes.

“I should really go then,” he whispered. “I’ll see you tonight.”

Both Keith and Allura waved him off as he turned to leave. Once out the door he let out a breath of relief.

Maybe he didn’t have to worry about the confession after all.

* * *

Lance was in fact not as lucky as he thought he was, because the second after he had put Vivian to bed Keith’s fingers started to tap on the head of the couch. Tapping his fingers or his feet was his nervous habit.

“So…”

“So,” he echoed Keith as he sat back on the couch. The air was tense and uncertain, he hadn’t felt this way in front of Keith since before they started dating because Lance didn’t know if Keith wanted a relationship with a guy with a child.

“I just wanted to talk about what happened on the phone,” Keith said calmly, but it still managed to make Lance cringe from embarrassment.

“Yeah,” he said as he scratched the back of his neck. “I suppose we should.”

There was a moment of quiet because there was no way that Lance wanted to start this conversation.

“Okay… Did you mean what you said?” Keith asked, both knowing what he meant. “I won’t be mad if it was an accident, I just wanted to make sure.”

His face went so hot, to the point where it felt like if he got any more red he was going to pass out from the heat. “Well that was an accident, but I did... mean it.”

He was too busy looking at his lap to notice that Keith had just opened his mouth to speak before he cut him off.

“This wasn’t how I wanted it to go. I always do this and go too fast and freak everyone out. Which was _why_ I was going to wait for you to say it first so you didn’t feel obliged to say it back or whatever.” Hey groaned into his hands as he felt frustrated tears in his eyes. “I don’t want to rush all this, or most importantly rush you. I’m really sorry. I’m such a coward, I didn’t even give you a second to respond because I was so freaked and hung up on you.”

He covered his hands over his eyes, he didn't want to see Keith's reaction to all that.

“You meant it?”

Lance nodded reluctantly.

“Then you hung up?”

He gave a single nod.

“Oh, no wonder you’re freaking out. Lance, I said it back.”

His brain froze over as those words struck. He said it back?

And he meant it?!

“I was just as surprised as you when I said it. I hadn’t even realised I did until Allura told me. But it wasn’t untrue. And I – can you please lift your head?” Reluctantly Lance followed the request and raised his head. Instantly their eyes met and something in Lance’s gut trembled.

“If you think that I’m only saying this because you said it, you're wrong. I’ve been wanting to say it for the past couple of weeks but with everything that’s been going on with your birthday I didn’t think it was the right time.”

Lance found himself sucking on a breath and not being able to let it go.

“And since you hung up on me before you actually heard my response,” he said with the teasing tone and a smile that made them both laugh quietly. “I’ll say it now instead. I love you. I am completely in love with you. I don’t know what happened in the past to make you feel like you had to wait for me to say it first, but know that when I’d say it, I mean it. Because of my mum leaving, and being in the foster system it made me really guarded when it came to loving people and telling them that. I think I’ve surprised myself and, well, everyone who knows me with just how quick I have come out of my shell with you.”

Lance saw the way that Keith's smile dropped in that moment as he swallowed, gulping on nothing but maybe a little bit of fear.

“And I know you feel like because of Vivian it makes everything more complicated with our relationship, but I want you to know I don’t feel that way. I love you both.”

Lance sat there, stunned. It was so much and so overwhelming but everything that he had ever wanted and it was so perfect.

“Keith,” Lance croaked, his voice only coming out as a whisper. He wrapped his arms around Keith’s neck and forced a huge hug onto him, face safely nestled into the crook of his shoulder. “I love you too.” He lifted his head back up so he could nudge their noses together. “We _both_ love you.”

Keith pulled him back into that hug, completely pressed against one another so there was no indication of where one starting on the other ended.

“Thank you for taking a chance on us, on me,” Lance said as he put his fingers through his hair.

Keith chuckled and shook his head. “Nah, I should be thanking you. For letting me in your life. I don’t think I’ve been happier.”

Lance squeezed him tighter and let himself enjoy the moment, knowing he was in love and loved back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for reading guys!! One more chapter for the first part in the series ❤❤❤❤


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The final chapter!!! (and the last thing I'll ever post....... as a teenager)  
> yes, i do be turning 20 tomorrow. guess I'm an adult now??? ew??
> 
> i consider this the 'prologue' of this series in the sense I always really just wanted to write domestic klance family fluff. So many, many bonus chapters to come which the first one will be coming out hopefully next weekend!! I hope you continue to read from there as well because I have some very cute stuff to share! and of course if you have any ideas i want to hear them!!!!
> 
> anyway, i hope you enjoy this! It's been a pleasure writing it!

“Babe, can you please get my blazer from my wardrobe?” Lance asked as he chased Vivian around the house who refused to put on her dress.

“Okay!” Came from the other room.

The past couple of months since he and Keith first said I love you to one another Vivian had been growing like a little weed. A cute, cheeky little weed that was now much faster on her feet. It felt like every time he blinked she was already doing something new.

“Vivian McClain, I swear to _God_ ,” he grumbled as he looked under the table to find his toddler giggling. “Baby, we don’t have time for this! We have to get your dress otherwise we’re going to be late and Adam’s mother will murder me,” he whined as he remembered the terrifying woman that he had met on the day of the wedding rehearsal.

Today was the wedding of Shiro and Adam. They had asked if Vivian would be one of the flower girls. There were two. Her, and one of Adams' nieces who was five.

It was a really big honour, considering they had only known Adam and Shiro for only around one year. She obviously wasn’t considering it as much of an honour as Lance.

Vivian made a mad dash for the couch which gave Lance the perfect opportunity to pounce. She shrieked with laughter as he scooped her up and took her back to her bedroom. It was like they were playing a game but Lance was really cutting it fine when it came to putting her frilly dress on and to buckling her shoes.

“Now was that so bad?” He asked her as he combed half her hair back into too high pigtails, leaving the rest to sit just above her shoulders. Even her hair had grown.

“Yes!” She insisted with a giggle that had Lance rolling his eyes fondly at.

“Sure, sure,” he drawled out as he let go of the final elastic. He cupped her chubby cheeks and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Now, why don’t you go sit on the couch and play with your toys while I get ready, okay?” He asked and without much more fuss she got up and trotted to the living room.

He sighed in relief and then went to his bedroom.

“Keith? Did you find my blazer? It should be at the back somewhere.” He paused as he noted Keith holding up a sheer tightfitting long sleeve cropped shirt.

“Uhhh… What’s this?” His boyfriend asked.

“Not my blazer. That’s my hoe outfit I wore to parties.”

Keith raised a brow as he looked at the garment, obviously considering something.

“I’ll wear for you later, but right now I just have to find my fucking blazer!” He was really showcasing his panic now, running over to the wardrobe and started looking for it himself and flinging half his clothes on the floor in the process.

Keith - the unhelpful bastard he was - wrapped his arms around Lance and pressed a kiss to his neck. “Stop stressing Lance, we still have heaps of time.”

“You are literally The Best Man! You should’ve been there like half an hour ago giving Shiro emotional support on the most important day of his life.” After finally finding his navy blue blazer he put it on.

“That looks good on you,” he smirked as he looked Lance up and down.

“Now is not the time to check me out! Wedding first! Ogling later!” He shouted as he ran for the door, grabbing his boyfriend’s hand and pulling him along as he went. When he spotted Vivian on the couch he made a mad dash for her. Seeing the mischievous grin on her face was a clear sign she was already planning her grand escape. There were more giggles and laughter as he picked her up and threw over his shoulder. “Time to move out soldiers! We’ve got a wedding to get to!”

* * *

“You look like Chris Jenner,” Allura told him as he held up his phone, ready to press record for when Vivian was going to walk down the aisle with her assortment of flower petals.

“I’ll be Chris Jenner if that means I get to have this recording on my phone. My parents and the rest of the family would rip my throat out if I didn’t get this,” he murmured as he adjusted the angle of his camera.

Romelle laughed along with Allura.

“Who is Chris Jenner?” Krolia, who was sitting next to Lance, asked.

“She pimped out her children for fame, but not like _literal_ pimping,” Lance explained. The woman’s brows pinched in confusion but she nodded slowly.

“Oh, okay.”

Krolia was a lot like Keith. Quiet, but caring once you cracked through their tough exterior. Each time he saw her she seemed to warm up to him just that little bit more. Even Vivian was starting to have her effect on the woman.

“Oh my goodness, Shiro looks nervous,” Allura smiled and they all looked at the front.

He really did look like he was seconds from passing out. Every few moments Shiro would glance back to Keith, who would give him a reassuring smile or say something quietly to him.

Keith appeared to be doing a very good best along with being a very _handsome_ best man. His hair was tied back nicely and the suit fitted him to the nines.

Lance snapped a quick photo for future reference.

The music that began to play in the meadow was soft and pretty, a strong indication that the ceremony had started. A young boy who he assumed was Adam’s young nephew brought down the ring and next was Adam’s niece and Vivian.

She looked so absolutely adorable in her poofy lavender dress. Big blue eyes that most of the McClain children were blessed with looked around in wonder.

One of Adam’s sisters gave her an encouraging nudge to get her walking down and follow the slightly older girl. They both looked adorable in their near matching dresses, but Lance could not take his eyes off his little girl. She would pick one single petal out of the basket, throw it in the air to let itself flutter to the ground. As far as spreading petals went, she probably wasn’t the greatest at it, but making the crowd awe at her cuteness she was a 10 out of 10.

Taking note that the other flower girl was using more petals, Vivian grabbed a big handful of the pink and white petals and threw them in the air, half of them landing in her hair. Lance could barely hold in his tears as he zoomed up on her with his phone camera.

She was much slower than Adam’s niece at walking down the aisle, taking her time with throwing petals and smiling at strangers, even waving at a couple of them. As she walked past him he made sure to cover his face with his phone because otherwise she would run straight to him instead of her proper destination.

“Are you crying?” Romelle giggled as he wiped his eyes.

“You would be crying too if you knew how long it took to get that dress on,” he joked and took a deep breath. The ceremony hadn’t even started and he was already in tears.

Vivian stopped for a second before turning back around and going the wrong way which everyone got a laugh out of. Someone on the outside of the outside seating tapped her shoulder and told her to go back the other way. They were lucky she obliged easily and started to toddle her way down. She was very slow at it, more curious by the petals and the people staring at her than her mission. But nobody really seemed to mind because of how freaking cute it was.

Adam’s niece had already gotten there about 40 seconds earlier but when Vivian reached the end her head went up and she dropped her basket.

“Keef!” She cheered in delight and then began to run straight to Keith. Keith just smiled with all teeth as everyone awed at the sight. He watched his boyfriend kneel down and pick her up once she reached him, picking a few petals out of her hair.

“Oh shit,” Lance sniffled with a wet laugh as tears dribbled down his face. “That’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen. I can’t believe I just got that on camera.” Romelle and Allura’s hand went to his knee for comfort while Krolia gave him a pat on the shoulder.

He loved his little family so much, to the extent that he never wanted it to change. Obviously that couldn’t happen, things were forever changing and life just wasn’t predictable.

Rachel getting pregnant had never been part of the plan.

Neither had her dying.

Lance certainly didn’t think he would be a father at 21.

But unpredictable things didn’t always have to be bad.

He hadn’t planned on dating while Vivian was so young and he was still grieving with the loss of his twin.

He hadn’t planned on falling in love.

But he did. He had fallen in love so hard.

The past year had been both one of the worst and best years of his life. And as unpredictable as it all was, he knew there was not a second of it he regretted.

Keith held Vivian in his arms the whole ceremony, which was beautiful. The vows prompted tears from more than just him, and the night was honestly magical.

Later in the celebration, he found himself stood by the snacks table, munching on some wedding cake with Pidge who was also stuffing her face. They both watched the others on the dance floor. Even Keith was dancing, bopping Vivian around and making her squeal with laughter.

“Hey Pidge,” Lance started, getting his friend's attention. She turned to look at him, not saying anything since she was chewing cake. “Thanks for letting me come with you to get your tattoo done.”

She smiled, swallowed her mouthful and punched his shoulder. “Sap. Now go dance.”

Lance grinned, ruffled her hair and sprinted away from her punches as he then went to his boyfriend and daughter to be also swept up in the dance.

* * *

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Lance asked as they walked hand-in-hand. Lance used his free hand to hold Vivian while Keith used his to hold two bouquets of flowers.

“Yeah, I think it’s about time. Are you?” Keith asked, glancing at him at the corner of his eyes.

Lance took a deep breath and nodded. “Yeah, I’m okay.”

Keith gave his hand a squeeze for reassurance as they both walked into the cemetery.

Before Rachel had died, Lance had never been to the cemetery before. To a funeral, sure. But in an actual cemetery? Never.

It wasn’t as creepy as movies made it out to be. Especially on a day like today when the weather was warm and the rain from the previous night had made the grass dewy and sparkle in the sunlight.

Now he was quite acquainted. He came here a lot after Rachel died. Would sit with a newborn Vivian by her grave and ask her questions.

_Why did you leave?_

_Why did you leave me?_

_Why did you leave her?_

_Why did you leave her with me?_

Which wasn’t really fair on Lance’s part. He was sure if Rachel had the choice, she would’ve wanted to stay and watch her baby grow. She would’ve wanted to be there for every milestone that Lance had the blessing of witnessing in her place.

Lance squeezed Keith’s hand.

Keith squeezed his hand back.

Vivian began to wriggle which was a sign that she wanted to be put down on her own feet. She walked a few steps ahead of them. A little leader in the making. It made him smile.

Rachel had always been the leader of the two of them. People describe her as wild, a mischievous trouble-maker. Lance would’ve said she was brave.

Even now, Rachel still found a way to lead Lance to his path in life.

“Which ones do you think Rachel would like?” Keith asked, holding up the two bouquets. One made of lilies and the other of boat orchids.

“These ones,” he said, taking the lilies. He then took the other from Keith’s hand. “I’m taking these for your dad. I need to make a good first impression.”

Keith snorted in amusement. “Sorry to burst your bubble but my dad wasn’t the type of guy who fussed over flowers.”

“The sentiment is still there,” Lance insisted as he took a deep breath, inhaling the pretty scent of lilies. He hummed in delight, but his smile only came as Keith kissed his cheek.

“He’ll still love them.”

“I hope he does.”

“Dog!” Vivian said in delight, gaining both their attention and followed her line of vision.

“Honey, that’s a rock,” Lance said as Keith tried to hide his snicker behind his hand.

“Oh,” she pouted sadly, obviously looking forward to seeing the dog.

“It’s okay Vee,” Keith started as he noticed the expression on her face. “You’re coming to my house for a sleepover tonight so you can see Kosmo.”

Now that Vivian was a little bit older she was sleeping in a bed. Keith took the liberty of buying a small bed for her and setting up a room so that when he and Vivian stayed over for the night she had a place to sleep. It made having “sleepovers” – as they had dubbed them – A lot easier since Keith didn’t have to worry about Kosmo being by himself.

Vivian giggled excitedly and bounced on her toes.

“Don’t get too ahead of yourself, we still have to see mami.”

“Mami,” she echoed and then began to toddle In the right direction. She had been here enough times to know the way.

As she got older it was going to be harder to explain to her why her mami was up in the sky, playing in the clouds rather than with her. But for now Lance didn’t have to worry about it. She didn’t ask questions. She didn’t really get it. All she knew was that this was a special place to go see mami.

For now, that was fine by him.

They walked over quietly. It was early, so there was no one else in the cemetery, which he liked. It made it feel more personal.

It didn’t take long before they reached the headstone. It was simple. His family didn’t go too crazy on it, but it was still nice. It said:

**Rachel McClain 1997-2018**

**A loving mother, sister and daughter**

It felt weird to see 2018. It sounded so long ago, but that was the year she died. Had it really been almost two years?

He looked to Vivian who is only a month off being two. Rachel died three weeks after the baby was born.

It was almost cruel how time kept going, it was relentless, held back for no one.

His sister hadn’t even made it to 22, and here he was at 23. His older twin, who always made fun of him for being born second, was forever , he would get wrinkles, go grey and his bones would creak.

While his twin, his older twin, would stay 21.

Lance quickly blinked away some tears that dampened his eyelashes and wiped his nose.

“You okay?” Keith asked which Lance responded with a nod which his boyfriend knew was the response he always gave when he didn’t want to cry. Instead of asking more, Keith grabbed his hand and placed a chaste kiss to the back of it. Leaning into his side they watched Vivian prance around the headstone. Her fingers traced the indentations of her mother’s name.

“Can I ask you a question Keith?” Lance asked quietly, his voice croaky.

“Sure, anything.”

“Do you remember much about your dad?”

Keith paused, probably going through the little information he had remembered. “Not much.”

“That doesn’t make it hurt any less, does it?” There was another pause because they both knew that answer. Just because you couldn’t remember them doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt. His silence was enough of an answer than any. Lance sniffed and cleared his throat so he could speak. “I hate knowing she’s going to miss her, to spend her life wondering what she was like. Because it doesn’t matter how much I tell her about Rachel, it’s never going to measure up to the real thing.” His voice hitched towards the end, so Keith put his arm around his shoulders and pulled him in close.

“You might not be her, and it’s true she won’t remember her mum, but you’re here to remind her that even though she’s gone, she still loved her with all her heart. Okay?”

Lance nodded and wiped his eyes on the shoulder of Keith’s jacket. Keith’s arm squeezed around him.

Vivian suddenly spun her around and walked her way over to Lance, her arms went around his calf. She may not even be two yet, but she was surprisingly in tune with emotions of those around her.

He smiled through his tears. “Thanks baby,” he said, picking her up so he could give her a proper cuddle.

There was definitely plenty of Rachel in her. Rachel was always there when Lance cried.

He kissed the side of her head and then turned to Keith. “Can you show me your dad’s grave now? I want to have a chat with him.”

Keith smiled and took his hand. The two stones of their loved ones weren’t too far away from one another. They stopped and looked down.

**T. Kogane 1969- 2000**

**A hero in the eyes of all, especially to his beloved son**

A part of Lance wondered if Keith was going to cry at his dad‘s grave. He didn’t. Was it time or practice? Maybe because he had more time to accept what happened. Even though Keith didn’t cry, Lance still held him close, dropping his head into Keith’s shoulder to let his boyfriend have time to reflect.

Would there one day be a time where Lance could look at Rachel’s grave and not burst into tears?

After a minute or two of quiet, Lance patted Keith’s shoulder. “Alright, time for you to go now. I need to talk to your dad in private.”

A small huff of laughter left Keith’s mouth. “Whatever you say.” He leaned in and kissed his lips for brief love and encouragement. “You do that, while I go to put Rachel's flowers down.” He turned to Vivian who stood between both of their legs. “Hey Vee, wanna come with me to give your mami some flowers?” he asked and Lance smiled as he watched his daughter’s face light up. “Okay, let’s go then,” he said and they both began to walk, Vivian’s hand scrunched up around Keith’s pants.

Once alone, Lance crouched down next to the headstone and placed the flowers down.

“I hope you don’t mind me coming to talk to you a little bit,” Lance said quietly. “You don’t know me, but I’m Lance, I’m dating your son.”

Even though Lance had spoken to Rachel’s headstone plenty of times, it felt a little odd to speak to someone he didn’t know.

“I guess I wanted to thank you for raising Keith for as long as you could. He misses you, I can tell. I don’t know a lot about Keith’s childhood and his teenage years, but I do know it would’ve been really hard on him. I’m still trying to get him to open up about that stuff, the stuff he wasn’t proud of. And if you’re watching from somewhere, you probably spent a lot of time worried about him.”

He had wished he’d known Keith before, so he had someone else to be there for him in those times. Keith was there for him at his lowest, so it only felt natural.

“Well, you don’t have to worry about him anymore. Because I really love him and I’m not planning on stopping. I want to be there for him from now on. For as long as he will have me. Think I’m probably gonna marry him one day.”

He smiled to himself and scratched the back of his head.

“I’ve never said that out loud before, so I guess this is me asking for permission someday? If you’re totally against it you could probably shoot down a lightning bolt to strike me down or something.”

He looked up at the clear sky, squinting at the severity of the sun.

“I’m taking that as a yes,” he chuckled. “I wish I got to meet you, from what Keith says you sound like a super cool guy. But I guess the main reason I wanted to talk to you was because your son helped me through probably one of the toughest times in my life, he’s a good man. But you probably already knew that, I just wanted to remind you.”

He looked over his shoulder to where Keith was, sitting by Rachel‘s grave, mouth moving with Vivian on his lap.

He looked back to the grave in front of him.

“I also want to tell you that he’s gonna make a really good dad one day. Like you. Selfless. Loving. Understanding.” Lance smiled. “There’s probably a whole list of things. And he’s going to be all of them. He doesn’t know It yet, but he will.”

Lance took a big shaky breath and closed his eyes for a moment.

“So thank you for being there for him for as long as you could. I’m going to make a promise to you that I’m going to be there for him, just as he was there for me. Don’t worry about him. He’s going to be more than fine.”

Lance smiled.

Wiped his eyes.

And took a moment to reflect.

* * *

Keith couldn’t help but smile as Vivian and Lance both stared in wonder and amazement at the pond where the koi fish swam around, occasionally coming up to the surface.

He’s not sure if this was the same place his father used to take him as a child, but it did bring back memories and nostalgia. The garden was in a traditional Japanese style and you could walk around looking at all the outdoor decor like the shishi-odoshi.

Since Shiro and Adam’s wedding was over and they just left at the cemetery Keith thought it would be nice to bring them down for some relaxation. These gardens were always so quiet with the sound of running water being the background and the overall tranquility.

“I can tell why your dad and you like to come here all the time, it’s so pretty,” Lance said as he took in the sights the garden had to offer without moving away from Vivian. He held onto her tight, not trusting her since she wanted to get as close to the fish as possible. They knew if they let her go Vivian would end up in the pond for an impromptu swim.

“You’ll love it in spring then, the cherry blossoms will be in bloom.”

Lance’s eyes widened and turned to Vivian who was still searching for the fish. “Then we definitely have to come back, don’t we Vivi?”

Her eyes didn’t leave the pond but she nodded her head.

Lance’s attention went back to Keith. “It’ll look like a total romance anime and I live for that.”

Keith scoffed. “Weeb.”

“Oh, says you who introduced _My Neighbour Totoro_ to Vivian who is now completely obsessed even though she doesn’t know what the hell is going on throughout the whole movie.”

“She understands enough to know she likes it. It’s a classic.” Keith looked back over the pond and the pretty pinks and purples of the flowers. “I used to watch it with my dad all the time.”

Lance smiled gently at that.

Keith wasn’t Vivian’s dad, but to him that didn’t matter because he was always going to be there for her, no matter what. The same with Lance. They’ve been together less than a year but they had been so deeply ingrained into one another’s lives that it was at the point of no returning.

He didn’t know where the future was going to go or where it would take him. But he knew one thing for certain; he loved Lance and Vivian. There was literally nothing he wouldn’t do for either of them. And one day he would be lucky and proud enough to call them his family.

Keith’s eyes went back out to the pond and smiled, knowing his dad was looking over him, maybe being the guardian he needed to push him in the right direction to finding Lance. Maybe Rachel was up there helping his dad to align their fate together too. Either way, he knew his father would be proud of who he had grown to be.

Now he had Lance to also grow even further and Vivian to watch grow and learn.

He couldn’t wait to see where life took him from now on.

* * *

"If you feel sick or lightheaded, please-"

"I'll be fine!" Lance said tying the makeshift blindfold in the form of a scarf around his eyes. 

"Is it a crime to make sure my boyfriend is safe?" Keith asked as Lance wriggled around in his seat with a grin.

"I'm getting kinky vibes."

"Don't be weird, I'm at work."

"Yes, but you see, I cannot see at the moment. If I use my imagination enough I'm in the honeymoon suite at some fancy hotel." He continued to grin as he heard Keith's huff in fake annoyance. 

"Big talk for someone who has to put a blindfold on to get a tattoo because he can't look at needles."

"You know my backstory!"

"Sorry to break it to you, but ear piercings hurt a whole lot less than a tattoo."

" _Why_ would you tell me that?"

Now he could hear Keith snickering, especially as Lance yelped at the sudden cold sensation on his arm.

"Disinfectant," Keith assured, followed by kissing his forehead which made Lance fall into a silly grin. "Alright, I'm going to turn the gun on now. Don't pass out on me yet. Let me know if you don't feel good."

"Promise me you'll continue it if I pass out?"

"No promises."

Lance scoffed. "Figured. Love's dead."

The sting was just as bad as he thought it would be. Painful, but bearable. He didn't feel nauseous, which might be because of the blindfold, or the familiarity of Keith's hands on his skin, the comfort in his even breaths and soft words of encouragement. 

Lance was almost surprised by how quick the time went and was almost in disbelief when Keith turned the tattoo needle killing machine off. "All done."

"Really?"

"Yeah, you can take your blindfold off."

He pulled it off and was quick to look at the inside of his arm, eyes instantly welling up with tears as he he caught sight of the lyrics on his arm. 

_I know you'll be looking down, swear I'm gonna make you proud  
I'll be living one life for the two of us_

Keith fidgeted in his seat. "Is it okay?"

It was better than okay. More than perfect. The perfect replica of Rachel's handwriting that Keith had studied from a few letters that she had written Lance a few years ago.

"It's perfect," he smiled before moving in to kiss his boyfriend. "I love it. I love _you."_

Keith smiled. "I love you too."

" _And!"_ Allura's voice broke the tender moment as she entered the room with a giggly Vivian in her arms. "Vivian loves you both! Quick! Photo time!" She moved across the room, placing Vivian half on Keith's and half on himself, snuggly in between them. "Hold your arm out Lancey! Show the camera your new ink!"

He held his arm out, grinning as he held onto his daughter and looking at the camera.

"Is this really necessary 'Lura?" Keith asked.

"I've said it once and I'll say it again, you'll thank me one day! Now, smile!"

And despite everything that has happened to Lance, he smiled. There was a stage in Lance's life where he wasn't sure if he would ever be able to smile genuinely again, yet he was proved wrong. It was so easy to smile now that he had Keith and Vivian by his side. 

He was happy to call them his family and was so excited to watch and experience growth with the both of them. To learn how to be a parent with Keith, to show Vivian how to become an amazing, independent and caring person just like her mother was.

 _Yeah,_ Lance smiled to himself, _Rachel would definitely be proud._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! 
> 
> Bonus chapter 1 (of many) will be out hopefully next week!
> 
> I hope you enjoyed and had a good time reading 💕💕💕

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading ❤  
> I hope I've intrigued you enough to stick around for the rest of the story!
> 
> also is our boy keithy seems a little OOC it's because it's more written in the style of when he left the space whale aka ~more mature keith~ hence the age difference as well


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